The island competes for the name "Cat Island" with the better known Tashirojima.
Welcome to the island of cats: it's called aoshima and is located in the Ehime district, in Japan from the south. The number of cats on the island is a record: six for every inhabitant. The cats were introduced to the island in 1945 to exterminate a mouse colony, which infested the fishing village.
There are now around 120 cats and they attract numerous tourists, the local population is reduced to a few. inhabitants who still dedicate themselves to fishing and to make room on an island that is very small, it is located in the arm of the sea called Seto Inland Sea, measures only one kilometer in length. To visit the island you can take a ferry which departs from the city of Ozu and reaches the island in approximately one hour of navigation.
aoshima It is not the only island with these characteristics: there is also one in eastern Japan tashirojima, in the Miyagi district. Cats were introduced here. to safeguard silkworm production, threatened by the presence of mice. Precisely this island is considered the real one. Cat Island, for which manga artists created works of art dedicated to felines.
Cats on both islands are protected because in Japan they are considered lucky charm.
