• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권3호
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• pp.262-266
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• 2021

In this study, three lecanid rotifer species were newly recorded in Korea: Lecane inermis (Bryce, 1892), L. furcata (Murray, 1913), and L. nana (Murray, 1913). Most of the lecanid rotifers recorded in Korea have been collected from stagnant water, and Lecane furcata and L. nana were collected from a reservoir. In contrast, L. inermis was found in a soil sample. Lecane inermis is the first illoricated lecanid species reported in Korea. This species is distinguished from other illoricated species by its toes with relatively long claws. Lecane furcata is the most common lecanid rotifer in submerged vegetation. The morphological characteristics of its lorica are similar to many other lecanid rotifers, but it can be distinguished by its completely fused toes with a terminal fissure, an absence of antero-lateral spines, and the ratio of lorica/toe length. Lecane nana is most similar to L. tryphema Harring & Myers, 1926, but can be distinguished by the toe tips curved outwards. The three species in this study are considered to have a cosmopolitan distribution and have been recorded in many Asian countries. In this paper, we describe the morphological characteristics of the three lecanid species with trophi structures observed by scanning electron microscope.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.1-11
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• 2021

Evidence highlighting the importance of gut microbiota in biodiversity conservation is growing; however, gut bacteria in South Korean wildlife have not been well identified. Using a culture-dependent isolation method, we identified the gut bacteria from Korean aquatic wildlife: the gazami crab (Portunus trituberculatus), Korean striped bitterling (Acheilognathus yamatsutae), oily bitterling (Acheilognathus koreensis), leopard mandarin fish (Siniperca scherzeri), Korean dark chub (Zacco koreanus), diving beetle (Cybister lewisianus), spotted steed (Abbottina springeri), and Korean spotted sleeper (Odontobutis obscura interrupta). We identified 18 strains previously unrecorded in South Korea by comparing 16S rRNA gene sequences of isolates against the EzBioCloud and National Institute of Biological Resources(NIBR) databases. The isolated strains belong to the phyla Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria. We also assessed for phylogenetic relatedness, Gram-stain reaction, colony and cell morphology, and biochemical characteristics. Basic information and 16S rRNA gene sequences of the isolates were registered in NIBR, and NIBR accession numbers are provided.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.78-85
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• 2021

Heterorhabdus papilliger (Claus, 1863) is newly reported from the Tsushima Warm Current realm of the southern Korean waters. Its morphological diagnostic characteristics generally agreed well with the original description and the previous records of H. papilliger. The female of H. papilliger can be recognized by the genital somite, which in lateral view has a more or less rounded genital prominence and an uninflated posterior ventral margin; the second exopodal segment of male right leg 5 with the medial projection with a large, rounded, plumose proximal lobe, and a poorly developed distal lobe. The genetic difference for the partial mtCOI gene between Korean specimens and H. papilliger from Spain and Japan of the same clade is 0.4%, while the difference between Korean specimens is 0.5%. However, the interspecific difference for the mtCOI gene between H. papilliger from the Korean waters and the other Heterorhabdus species is in the range of 14.7-20.8%, suggesting that the former is a valid species.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.23-45
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• 2021

For the collection of indigenous prokaryotic species in Korea, 77 strains within the phylum Actinobacteria were isolated from various environmental samples, fermented foods, animals and clinical specimens in 2019. Each strain showed high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity (>98.8%) and formed a robust phylogenetic clade with actinobacterial species that were already defined and validated with nomenclature. There is no official description of these 77 bacterial species in Korea. The isolates were assigned to 77 species, 31 genera, 18 families, 14 orders and 2 classes of the phylum Actinobacteria. All the strains except one Coriobacteriia strain were affiliated within the class Actinomycetia. Among them, the orders Streptomycetales and Microbacteriales were predominant. A number of strains were isolated from forest soils, riverside soils, and ginseng cultivated soils. Twenty-nine strains were isolated from 'Protected Ecosystem and Scenery Areas'. Morphological properties, basic biochemical characteristics, isolation source and strain IDs are described in the species descriptions.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.46-56
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• 2021

Diatoms have been used in examining water quality and environmental change in freshwater systems. Here, we analyzed molecular profiling of seasonal diatoms in the Han River, Korea, using the hypervariable region of 18S V1-V3 rRNA and pyrosequencing. Physicochemical data, such as temperature, DO, pH, and nutrients showed the typical seasonal pattern in a temperate region. In addition, cell counts and chlorophyll-a, were recorded at high levels in spring compared to other seasons, due to the diatom bloom. Metagenomic analysis showed a seasonal variation in the phytoplankton community composition, with diatoms as the most frequently detected in spring (83.8%) and winter (69.7%). Overall, diatom genera such as Stephanodiscus, Navicula, Cyclotella, and Discostella were the most frequent in the samples. However, a large number of unknown Thalassiosirales diatoms were found in spring (35.5%) and winter (36.3%). Our molecular profiling revealed a high number of diatom taxa compared to morphological observation. This is the first study of diatoms in the Han River using molecular approaches, providing a valuable reference for future study on diatoms-basis environmental molecular monitoring and ecology.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.12-22
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• 2021

During a comprehensive investigation of indigenous prokaryotic species in Korea, 25 and 10 bacterial strains assigned to the classes Alphaproteobacteria and Betaproteobacteria, respectively, were isolated from diverse environmental habitats, including soil, mud, tidal field, sea water, sand, rusted iron, and leaf. Based on their high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities (>98.7%) and the formation of robust phylogenetic clades with type species, each strain was assigned to an independent and predefined bacterial species. Since there were no published or official reports regarding these 35 isolates in Korea, they - 25 species of 14 families in the 5 orders of Alphaproteobacteria and 10 species of 3 families in the two orders of Betaproteobacteria - have been reported as unrecorded species in Korea. In addition, Gram reaction, colony and cell morphology, basic biochemical characteristic, isolation source, and strain ID of each species are also described in the species description sections.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.86-98
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• 2021

The genus Pholcus Walckenaer, 1805 is the largest genus among the cellar spider family Pholcidae C.L. Koch, 1850, including 339 species. To date, 33 species in the genus are known to be distributed in Korea, being placed into three species-groups(crypticolens-group, phalangioides-group, and phungiformes-group). About 91% of these species are endemic to Korea. In this study, four new species of the genus Pholcus were discovered in Korea, viz, Pholcus chuncheonensis Lee, Choi and Kim sp. nov., Pholcus pajuensis Lee, Choi and Kim sp. nov., Pholcus pocheonensis Lee, Choi and Kim sp. nov., and Pholcus unaksanensis Lee, Choi and Kim sp. nov. These new species are classified as members of the phungiformes-group, having morphological characteristics such as male chelicerae with a frontal apophysis, palpal tibia with a prolateroventral tubercle, and genital bulb without appendix or having pseudo-appendix, but can be distinguished from congeners by characteristics of the male palp and female genitalia. Detailed descriptions and a key to new species are provided with accompanying photographs.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권3호
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• pp.276-286
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• 2021

We performed a taxonomic study on Korean Pacificincolidae (Bryozoa: Cheilostomata) with the materials collected from 39 localities(ports, intertidal and subtidal zones) in the coastal seas of South Korea from 1981 to 2020. Korean Mucronella perforata reported by Rho and Seo (1985) turned out to be not Pacificincola perforata, but Primavelans glabricollaris n. sp. based on morphological data. Pacificincola perforata, which was transferred from Mucronella perforata (Okada and Mawatari, 1937), is also added to the Korean fauna. This study is the first to use mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene sequences to study the family Paficincolidae. The NJ analysis also reconfirmed the validity of the genus Primavelans, established on the basis of the early astogeny by De Blauwe in 2006, with the mitochondrial 16S rRNA sequences. The inter-genetic distance among two species belong to the Pacificincolidae was in the range of 13.39±1.83 mm. Primavelans glabricollaris n. sp. is thus distinguished from Pacificincola perforata with both morphological and molecular data. A new species, Primavelans glabricollaris, and a new record, Pacificincola perforata from Korea are herein described in detail and illustrated by scanning electron microscopy.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권3호
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• pp.237-245
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• 2021

Tidal flats are well developed in and around the Yellow Sea of Northeast Asia, and benthic diatoms are the most important primary producers in corresponding habitats. In the present study, the taxonomy and distribution of small negligible diatom species from Northeast Asian tidal flats are investigated for better understanding of the diversity of Korean marine benthic diatoms. The presence of Plagiogrammopsis minima and Diploneis aestuarii, which may have been ignored and/or misidentified due to their small size, were identified by both means of light microscopy (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Plagiogrammopsis minima has never been reported from Korea before the present study, while Diploneis aestuarii was only once mentioned without any photographic information. Accordingly, we provide the morphological characteristics of the two species in detail with LM and SEM observation. Information on the regional distribution of the two species is also provided. Results of the present study contribute to the better understanding of the biodiversity of the Korean marine benthic diatoms.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제10권3호
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• pp.191-200
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• 2021

To study the biodiversity of bacterial species, here we report indigenous prokaryotic species of Korea. A total of 23 bacterial strains affiliated to the class Alphaproteobacteria were isolated from various environmental sources including seaweeds, seawater, fresh water, wetland/marsh, tidal sediment, plant roots, sewage and soil. Considering higher than 98.8% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities and formation of a well-defined phylogenetic clade with named species, it was confirmed that each strain belonged to the predefined bacterial species of the class Alphaproteobacteria. There is no official report of these 23 species in Korea; 20 species of 16 genera (Mameliella, Yangia, Paracoccus, Ruegeria, Loktanella, Phaeobacter, Dinoroseobacter, Tropicimonas, Lutimaribacter, Litoreibacter, Sulfitobacter, Roseivivax, Labrenzia, Hyphomonas, Maricaulis, Thalassospira) in the order Rhodobacterales and 3 species of a single genus (Brevundimonas) in the order Caulobacterales. Gram-staining, cell morphology, basic biochemical characteristics, isolation sources, optimum temperature, growth media, and strain IDs are detailed in the species description as well as Table 1.