[3] The Volcano Islands are: Farther north but in the same volcanic arc is: There is a Japan Self-Defense Forces air base on Iwo Jima with a staff of 380.

[1][2] However, archeological evidence has revealed that islands of the greater Bonin archipelago were prehistorically inhabited by an unknown Micronesian people.

[5] The population was about 1,100 in 1939, distributed among five settlements: Higashi, Minami, Nishi, Kita, and Motoyama (meaning "East", "South", "West", "North", and "Mountain of Origin", or central mountain) on Iwo Jima; and two settlements on Kita Iwo Jima: Ishino-mura ("Ishino village"; Ishino is a surname) and Nishi-mura ("West village").

They are part of the Ogasawara subtropical moist forests ecoregion and are home to unique and diverse plants and animals, including many endemic species.

They have been recognised as forming an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because they support populations of red-tailed tropicbirds, Japanese wood pigeons and Matsudaira's storm petrels.