Fujimae-Higata. 14/10/02; Aichi; 323 ha; 35°04'N 136°50'E. A tidal flat at the mouths of the Shonai, Shinkawa, and Nikko rivers as they flow into the port city of Nagoya. The site is an important staging site along the East Asia-Australia Flyway with one of the highest shorebird counts in Japan - some seven species of shorebird surpass the 1% threshold in the area, and more than 20,000 waterbirds have been counted frequently. The wetland is also visited by a number of endangered species, including the birds Tringa guttifer, Botaurus stellaris stellaris, Tadorna tadorna, and Sterna albifrons sinensis, among others, and the endangered fish Chaenogobius macrognathos. Once part of extensive tidal flats in the northern part of Ise Bay, the site remains relatively unaltered itself amid widespread transformation of the surrounding areas for development purposes. A popular site with bird watchers, it is said that, when plans to "reclaim" the tidal flat entirely for a dumping site were abandoned by the City Council, "the site became a symbol of the wetland conservation movement in Japan". Bird watching facilities exist and a wetland education centre is planned for 2003-4. Ramsar site no. 1200. Most recent RIS information: 2004.