Shiretoko National Park

Shiretoko National Park covers most of the Shiretoko Peninsula at the northeastern tip of Hokkaido, Japan, a remote area reachable only on foot or by boat, and takes its name from an Ainu word meaning the place where the earth protrudes. It holds Japan's largest population of brown bears and supports Steller's sea eagles, white tailed eagles, spotted seals, orcas and sperm whales, across temperate and subalpine forest dominated by Sakhalin fir, Erman's birch and Mongolian oak, with features such as the hot spring waterfall Kamuiwakka Falls. UNESCO inscribed the peninsula as a World Heritage Site in 2005 in recognition of its natural value, a designation that has drawn criticism from the Ainu, who see a purely natural heritage framing as overlooking their own long settlement of the region.