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A Japanese dragon, also known as ryū or tatsu (龍 or 竜, "dragon") is a mythical animal from Japan.
Like other creatures called dragons, the Ryū is a big, fantastic animal that looks similar to a serpent, and is related to the Chinese lóng and the Korean yong. Like all these Asian dragons, it is shown without wings, has legs with claws, and usually lives in the ocean, the clouds, or heavens. Japanese dragons do not fly as often as the Chinese one, which is the reason why they usually appear much more like serpents. The ryū in art has only three toes, instead of the lóng's five or the yong's four.
Japanese dragons usually live in the sea. This is because Japan is an island, and the sea is present in most of its geography.
Ryū originated from China and is one of the four creatures from heavens of Japanese mythology (the other three are the phoenix, turtle and tiger). It has often been the symbol of the Emperor or of a hero.