Lesser Kurils Zakaznik

Lesser Kurils Zakaznik
Малые Курилы
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
LocationYuzhno-Kurilsky District, Sakhalin Oblast, Russia
Coordinates43°25′11″N 146°04′11″E / 43.41972°N 146.06972°E / 43.41972; 146.06972
Area678.92 km2 (262.13 sq mi)
Established13 May 1983

Lesser Kurils Zakaznik (Russian: Малые Курилы) is a federal-level Zakaznik or "State Nature Preserve" in the disputed Lesser Kuril Chain, administered by Sakhalin Oblast, Russia, but also formally part of Nemuro Subprefecture, Japan. The preserve was established in 1983, in accordance with the Japan-Soviet Joint Communiqué of 10 October 1973. The protected area of 678.92 square kilometres (262.13 sq mi) includes a marine area of 409 square kilometres (158 sq mi).