Aside from the bunny-ear designs on the window, there is little to suggest the ferry has arrived at an island overrun with rabbits. But moments after passengers disembark, movement stirs in the undergrowth. A single rabbit darts out, completely unbothered by its human visitors. Then another appears.
A short walk along the coast leads visitors into the heart of rabbit territory on Okunoshima, one of 3,000 islands in Japan’s Seto Inland Sea. Half a dozen rabbits chase away another as it tries to join them for a shared meal of Chinese cabbage. The scene plays out in front of smiling tourists with cameras, who can hardly believe how close they are to Okunoshima’s famous—yet troubled—furry residents.
The two grey rabbits that greeted the ferry from the mainland return to bushes stripped bare of leaves. Shallow bowls of water left by volunteers are scattered around the island, placed where its estimated 400-500 rabbits tend to gather, hoping for pellets of food from visitors. In the absence of their natural diet of fallen leaves, bark, roots, and grass, the rabbits now depend on tourists and volunteers for sustenance.
Despite its natural beauty and popularity as a tourist spot, Okunoshima—uninhabited except for the staff and guests of its single hotel—faces an uncertain future, and so do its four-legged inhabitants.
From 1929 until the end of the Second World War, the island housed secret poisonous gas research and production facilities operated by the Imperial Japanese Army. The operation was so covert that Okunoshima was left off maps of Japan at the time.
Workers clad in rubber uniforms, gloves, long boots, and gas masks produced mustard gas, along with smaller amounts of tear gas and cyanide.
This hidden chemical weapons program—not exposed until the 1980s—also marked the beginning of the island’s link to rabbits. About 200 rabbits were used in experiments to test the effectiveness of gases deployed by Japan’s army during the Sino-Japanese War and later in balloon bombs aimed at the United States.
In the early 1970s, a nearby elementary school released a small number of rabbits onto the abandoned island, hoping to breathe new life into it. By 2024, nearly 200,000 people visited Okunoshima, drawn by its picturesque coastline and the chance to step into a rabbit paradise.
Koji Yamamoto first came to Okunoshima five years ago out of an interest in wartime history. But it’s the rabbits that keep him returning. “This is my 30th time here,” the retiree says, watching grey rabbits eagerly eat the pellets he has laid out for them.
“There isn’t much natural vegetation, so I thought it would be good to come regularly and feed them, especially in winter when there aren’t many tourists.”
After Japan’s defeat, forces tried to destroy evidence of their wartime activities, including killing their stock of white lab rabbits.
Experts haven’t ruled out a genetic connection between the rabbits used in wartime experiments and those that roam Okunoshima today. However, the chances are “very low,” says Shingo Kaneko, a professor in the Faculty of Symbiotic Systems Science at Fukushima University.A university researcher is studying the rabbits’ DNA to learn more about their origins. “Even if an individual rabbit survived the wartime experiments, it would have been very difficult for its lineage to continue. I can’t say it’s impossible, but it’s a story people like to believe could be true.”
A hinomari yosegaki (Japanese good-luck flag) displayed at the island’s Poison Gas Museum is inscribed with “shuku nyūei” (“congratulations on your enlistment”), a phrase wishing soldiers safety and success in war, along with signatures and messages from family and friends.
Kaneko’s study of hundreds of droppings revealed that the rabbits have diverse DNA, suggesting animals have been left on the island on multiple occasions, possibly by people hoping to give unwanted pets a new home.
Unable to compete with larger animals for dwindling natural food, the rabbits are now entirely dependent on visitors and volunteers for sustenance, according to Kaneko. “They depend on people for food, and that’s not good. There is not enough natural food,” he says. “The rabbits look happy enough in social media posts, but their existence is increasingly precarious.”
Yamamoto will not leave his spot until the rabbits have eaten every last morsel. “You have to stay with them until they’ve finished, otherwise other animals come and help themselves,” he says. The predators—usually wild boar and crows—not only eat the rabbits’ feed but have been known to attack them.
Last year, their chief tormentor was Ryu Hotta, a 25-year-old who received a suspended prison sentence after being found guilty of abusing multiple rabbits by kicking them or inserting scissor blades in their mouths. Media reports said the carcasses of 77 rabbits were discovered on Okunoshima between November 2024 and January last year, although it was not clear how many had died as a result of abuse.
As concern grows over the future of the rabbit population, some worry that the island’s past could be forgotten. “About 85% of people who visit Okunoshima come to see the rabbits and give this place a miss,” says Kazuhito Takashima, who manages the Poison Gas Museum, where exhibits include uniforms worn by plant workers and photos of the disfigurements they suffered after exposure to dangerous chemicals. “Most Japanese people have no idea about the poisonous gas facilities… we didn’t learn about this kind of thing at school.”
As tourists leave Okunoshima on the Lapina pleasure boat, they take their final photos of the rabbits, whose company they will commemorate with a visit to a souvenir shop 15 minutes away across the water.
“There are lots of tourists now, but there is no guarantee that will always be the case,” says Kaneko, adding that the relative lack of visible droppings suggests the rabbit population is falling again after an increase following the lifting of coronavirus restrictions.
“I feel very conflicted when I leave Okunoshima. It’s a place of darkness and light. Its connection with poisonous gas ended 80 years ago, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have problems… they are just of a different kind.”
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs About kunoshima The Rabbit Island of Japan
Beginner General Questions
1 Where is this Rabbit Island and what is its real name
The island is called kunoshima Its a small island located in Japans Inland Sea near the city of Takehara in Hiroshima Prefecture
2 Why are there so many rabbits on the island
The exact origin is debated but the popular theory is that a group of schoolchildren released eight rabbits on the island during a field trip in 1971 With no natural predators they multiplied rapidly Another darker theory links them to testing from the islands past
3 Is it safe to visit and interact with the rabbits
Yes it is generally safe to visit The rabbits are wild but very accustomed to people However you should be gentle move calmly and never pick them up or chase them
4 What should I feed the rabbits
You can purchase special rabbit food at the islands hotel or ferry terminal It is very important NOT to feed them human food like chips bread or sweets as it can make them very sick
5 How do I get to Rabbit Island
You take a short 15minute ferry from Tadanoumi Port The ferry runs several times a day
Advanced Detailed Questions
6 What is the shadow in the islands history
During World War II kunoshima was a secret military site used for the production of poison gas The ruins of the gas factory and a Poison Gas Museum are on the island serving as a sobering reminder of this pasthence the land of shadows reference
7 Are the rabbits related to the islands wartime history
Its unlikely A persistent myth says they are descendants of test subjects from the gas program but historians and the museum refute this The gas program ended in 1945 and all animals were euthanized The current population almost certainly stems from the 1971 release
8 What are the main rules for visiting
Key rules include Do not feed human food Do not bring outside animals Do not chase or grab rabbits Take all your trash back with
