Suruga Bay

An inlet found on the Pacific coast of the Chubu region. The area is bounded by a line connecting Cape Irozaki at the southern tip of the Izu Peninsula on the east with Cape Omaezaki on the west. It contains small bays such as Shimizu Port, created by the Miho Divergence Sand Spit, Enoura Bay, Uchiura Bay, and Heda on the Izu Peninsula. The Tagonoura Sand Dunes have developed at the inner part of the bay. Looking at the undersea topography, there is a deep, groove-shaped area called the Suruga Trough that extends south from the mouth of the Fuji River. The mouth of the bay is 2,500 meters deep, and is thought to be the plate boundary that continues to the Nankai Trough in the Enshu Nada Sea. The eastern side of the Suruga Trough has a steep continental slope, while the western side has a continental shelf and a shallow bank with a layer of sand and gravel called Senoumi, making it a good fishing ground. A branch of the Kuroshio Current flows back through the bay, giving it the characteristics of an open ocean area, and the area has many fisheries, including yellowtail, mackerel, and bonito, as well as local specialties such as cherry shrimp, spider crab, and seaweed. There are many fishing ports, including Yaizu, a base for deep-sea fishing. There have also been coastal disasters, such as tsunamis along the Izu Peninsula coast, high tides on Yoshiwara Coast in the inner bay, and coastal erosion on Kuno Coast in Shizuoka, and the artificial construction of embankments on the coast is also progressing.

[Kitagawa Mitsuo]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中部地方太平洋岸にみられる湾入部。東側の伊豆半島南端の石廊崎(いろうざき)と西側の御前崎(おまえざき)とを結ぶ線で囲まれる海域。三保(みほ)分岐砂嘴(さし)による清水(しみず)港、伊豆半島の江浦(えのうら)湾、内浦湾、戸田(へだ)などの小湾がある。湾奥部には田子ノ浦砂丘が発達する。海底地形をみると、富士川河口から南に延びる駿河トラフとよばれる溝状の深部がある。湾口部では水深2500メートルに達し、遠州灘(えんしゅうなだ)の南海舟状海盆に続くプレートの境界とも考えられている。駿河トラフの東側は急傾斜の大陸斜面をもち、西側は大陸棚や石花海(せのうみ)とよばれる砂礫(されき)層をのせる浅堆(せんたい)もみられ、好漁場となっている。黒潮の分流が湾内を還流するために外洋性海域の性質ももち、ブリ、サバ、カツオの漁獲が多く、特産にサクラエビ、タカアシガニ、テングサなどがあり、遠洋漁業の基地焼津(やいづ)をはじめ漁港も多い。伊豆半島沿岸の津波、湾奥部の吉原海岸の高潮、静岡久能(くのう)海岸の海岸侵食など海岸災害もみられ、築堤による海岸の人工化も進行している。

［北川光雄］

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