• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.185-194
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• 2014

Seasonal monitoring was implemented to understand the influence of macrophyte bed structure on the composition and trophic interaction of aquatic organisms (algae, zooplankton, macro-invertebrate, and fish) in a shallow wetland (Upo Wetland, South Korea). Distinct division of the plant assemblage (reed zone and mixed plant zone) was observed. The reed zone was composed solely of Phragmites communis, whereas the mixed plant zone comprised a diverse macrophyte assemblage (Salvinia natans, Spirodela polyrhiza, Trapa japonica, Ceratophyllum demersum, and Hydrilla verticillata). Most of the aquatic organisms were more abundant in the mixed plant zone than in the reed zone, and this was positively associated with the seasonal development of macrophyte cover. Stable isotope analysis showed seasonal interactions among aquatic organisms. The majority of aquatic animal (zooplankton, Odonata, and Ephemeroptera) were dependent on epiphytic particulate organic matter (EPOM), and the dependence on EPOM gradually increased toward autumn. Interestingly, Lepomis macrochirus consumed Ephemeroptera and zooplankton in both macrophyte zones, but Micropterus salmoides depended on different food items in the reed zone and the mixed plant zone. Although, M. salmoides in the reed zone showed food utilization similar to L. macrochirus, it consumed Odonata or small L. macrochirus in the mixed plant zone. Based on these results, it appears that differences in the structure of the two macrophyte zones support different assemblages of aquatic organisms, strongly influencing the trophic interactions between the aquatic organisms.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.198-205
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• 2008

Benthic macroinvertebrates were examined to elucidate community structures of a set of 9 shallow ponds from a total of 6 parks located in Seoul metropolitan area, Korea. The result showed that macroinvertebrates were diverse and abundant, and aquatic macrophyte provide habitat diversities in ponds. The differences among benthic macroinvertebrate community compositions seemed to be attributed to local biotic and abiotic interactions. We surveyed benthic macroinvertebrate, biotic (macrophyte), abiotic (turbidity, nutrient concentrations, conductivity, heavy metal concentration) and morphometric (area, depth) of the lentic systems. Generally, the benthic macroinvertebrates were dominated by Cloeon dipterum or Coenagrion sp.. Distribution of the aquatic macrophyte community was correlated with the species composition of macroinvertebrates. The result demonstrated a significant and positive relationship between habitat quality and macroinvertebrate composition.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.333-345
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• 2011

Aquatic macrophytes, often also called hydrophytes, are key components of aquatic and wetland ecosystems. This review is to briefly summarizes various macrophyte classifications, and covers numerous aspects of macrophytes' role in wetland ecosystems, namely in nutrient cycling. The most widely accepted macrophyte classification differentiates between freely floating macrophytes and those attached to the substrate, with the attached, or rooted macrophytes further divided into three categories: floating-leaved, submerged and emergent. Biogeochemical processes in the water column and sediments are to a large extent influenced by the type of macrophytes. Macrophytes vary in their biomass production, capability to recycle nutrients, and impacts on the rhizosphere by release of oxygen and organic carbon, as well as their capability to serve as a conduit for methane. With increasing eutrophication, the species diversity of wetland macrophytes generally declines, and the speciose communities are being replaced by monoculture-forming strong competitors. A similar situation often happens with invasive species. The roles of macrophytes and sediment microorganisms in wetland ecosystems are closely connected and should be studied simultaneously rather than in isolation.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.45-54
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• 2016

Background: Macrophytes are commonly utilised as habitat by epiphytic species; thus, complex macrophyte structures can support high diversities and abundances of epiphytic species. We tested the hypothesis that the presence of aquatic macrophytes is an important factor determining Sida crystallina (O.F. Muller, 1776) distribution. Results: An ecological survey was conducted in 147 lentic freshwater bodies. S. crystallina was frequently observed, and its density was strongly associated with macrophyte abundance. S. crystallina was found on emergent plant species such as Phragmites australis and Paspalum distichum, attached to the stem surfaces by adhesive substances secreted by the nuchal organ. Thus, S. crystallina was more strongly attached to macrophytes than to other epiphytic cladoceran species. We found higher densities of S. crystallina in filtered water with increased macrophyte shaking effort (i.e. 10, 20, 40, or 80 times). S. crystallina attachment was not related to fish predation. Stable isotope analysis showed that S. crystallina utilises epiphytic organic matter (EOM) on macrophytes as a food source. Conclusions: Consequently, S. crystallina seems to have a strong association with species-specific macrophyte biomass than with other cladoceran species, which may contribute to this species' predominance in various freshwater ecosystems where macrophytes are abundant.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.289-294
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• 2003

To quantify nutrient loading from emergent macrophytes through leaching in the littoral zones of Paldang Reservoir, we conducted incubation experiments using leaf litter of the emergent macrophyte, Zizaniz latifolia. To separate the leaching process from microbial decay, we used $HgCl_2$ to suppress microbial activity during the experiment. We measured electric conductivity, absorbance at 280nm, total nitrogen and dissolved inorganic nitrogen, total phosphorus and soluble reactive phosphorus, Na, K, Mg and Ca amounts in leaf litter and in water. In addition, we examined the effects of water temperature and ion concentrations of ambient water on the leaching process. A total of 6% of the initial ash-free dry mass of leaf litter was lost due to leaching during incubation (four days). Electric conductivity and A280 continued to increase and saturate during the incubation. To compare reaching rates of different nutrients, we fitted leaching dynamics with a hyperbolic saturation function [Y=AㆍX/(B+X)]. From these fittings, we found that ratios of leaching amounts to nutrient concentration in the litter were in the order of K > Na > Mg > P > Ca > N. Leaching from leaf litter of Z. latifolia was dependent on water temperature while it was not related with ion concentrations in the ambient water. Our results suggest that the leaching process of nutrients, especially phosphorus, from aquatic macrophytes provides considerable contribution to the eutrophication of the Paldang Reservoir ecosystem.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.435-442
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• 1994

In the littoral zone of Lake Paltangho, a vegetation map of aquatic macrophytes was constructed to estimate their occupied area, and the change of abundance of submersed macrophytes was examined along water depth to elucidate niche perferences on the depth gradient. Total area of the littoral zone was 267 ha, of which submersed, emergent and floating-leaved macrophytes covered 155ha, 103 ha and 10ha, respectively. Submersed macrophytes were distributed within a water-depth of 2.5m, with an apparent pattern of zonation: Vallisnaria gigantea and Ceratophyllum demersum at the deeper water depth of 1.5~2.5m.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.24 no.12
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• pp.415-427
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• 2021

Wetland ecosystems act as natural freshwater purification systems, but their rich biodiversity is being threatened with the introduction of the non-native freshwater snail, Pomacea canaliculata. This study was conducted to measure the herbivory effects and growth rate of P. canaliculata on common macrophytes: Ipomoea aquatica, Ipomoea batatas, Pandanus amaryllifolius and Cucurma longa. In separate experiments, the macrophyte species were served as the snails' food as individual species and simultaneously. In the individual treatment, the growth pattern and rate were based on the snails' weight (mg/snail/day; n = 9) while the individual feeding consumption (mg/snail/day) was calculated from the leftover food. In the simultaneous treatment, the herbivory effects were evaluated as the feeding preference (%) from observations every two hours, while the total feeding consumption (mg) was calculated based on the food remaining after a 12-hour experiment (3 replicates: total n = 27). The results indicated that the growth pattern was significant for snails grazing on I. aquatica but not when other macrophyte species were eaten. The individual feeding consumption was higher when using I. aquatica than P. amaryllifolius but the growth rate for snails grazing on I. aquatica and P. amaryllifolius did not differ significantly. Meanwhile, the consumption of C. longa deterred the snails' growth rate. Although the snails consumed all the macrophytes in the individual experiment, when given the species simultaneously, the feeding preference and total feeding consumption were directed significantly more toward I. aquatica than P. amaryfollius and C. longa. We conclude that P. canaliculata is a generalist feeder given a limited choice of food but tends to show a strong feeding preference after being introduced to more food choices. These findings indicate that the introduction of P. canaliculata into wetland ecosystems may increase the herbivory effects on macrophytes, making these ecosystems vulnerable to the impact of eutrophication and biodiversity reduction.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers Conference
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.550-556
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• 2000

Three floating islands were constructed on the surface of the reservoir, each consisting of 10 16-㎡ (4${\times}$4 m) segments, made of wood frames and floats. Three species of aquatic macrophytes were planted in each island on June, 1998. Phragmites australis was considered as the suitable aquatic macrophyte for the floating islands since it maintained the most efficient root and shoot balance among the macrophytes. The net primary productivity of P. Australis was 3,604 g/㎡ based on dry weight in 1999, with uptake rates of nitrogen and phosphorus estimated at 77.4 g/㎡/yr and 5.7 g/㎡/yr, respectively. The result of water quality simulation for the floating islands showed that, through adsorption of nutrients and light screening, they could reduce the amount of phytoplankton, thereby decreasing COD concentration.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.62-69
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• 2014

Standing crop distribution of aquatic plants in the West Nakdong River and riparian wetlands in the Nakdong River were surveyed in May, July and September, 2010. Total 25 aquatic macrophyte species (submerged: 9, leaf-floating: 3, free-floating: 5, emergent: 8) were observed during the survey periods. Distribution area of aquatic plants and proportion of submerged communities were highest in Garakchi-deung ($212,032m^2$, 72.7%). The distribution area of aquatic plants was highest in Phragmites australis community ($421,584m^2$), followed by Hydrilla verticillata-Vallisneria natans community ($181,511m^2$), Potamogeton wrightii-Vallisneria natans community ($61,604m^2$), and Hydrocharis dubia community ($49,709m^2$). Garakch-ideung (212,032 kg) also had the highest aquatic plant production, followed by Suanchi-deung (15,546 kg), Daedong (5,813 kg), Dunchi-do (3,963 kg), Maekdo (1,463 kg), Yeommak (571 kg), Jungsa-do (530 kg), and Shinan (300 kg). Average standing crop of the study area were $147.8{\pm}20.8g\;DW{\cdot}m^{-2}$ in 1988, $96.1{\pm}20.0g\;DW{\cdot}m^{-2}$ in 2000, and $172.6{\pm}76.1g\;DW{\cdot}m^{-2}$ in 2010. For a sustainable management of river habitat and food source, aquatic plant should concurrently be surveyed with river environmental variables (i.e. sediment, nutrient, flow).

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.134-142
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• 2006

The treatment of high-strength swine wastewater by anaerobic digestion combined with an aquatic plant system was investigated. Anaerobic digestion of swine wastewater gave volatile solids (VS) removal efficiencies of 43.3%, 52.1% and 54.5% for hydraulic retention times (HRTs) of 20, 30, 40 days, respectively. The removal efficiencies of VS, total chemical oxygen demand (TCOD) and soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) decreased with increasing VS volumetric loading rate (VLR). Higher organic removal efficiency was observed at longer HRTs for the same VS volumetric loading rate. As VS volumetric loading rate increased, biogas production increased and the methane content of the biogas decreased. Experiments using duckweed (Lemna species) as an aquatic macrophyte gave the following results. In the case of nitrogen, removal efficiency was above 60% and effluent concentration was below 10.0 mg/L when the influent ammonia-N loading was about $1.0\;g/m^2/day$. In the case of phosphorus, removal efficiency was above 55% and effluent concentration was below 2.0 mg/L when the influent $PO_4$-P loading was about $0.15\;g/m^2/day$. In addition, crude protein and phosphorus content of duckweed biomass increased from 15.6% to 41.6% and from 0.8% to 1.6%, respectively, as the influent nutrient concentration increased. The treatment of high-strength swine wastewater by anaerobic digestion combined with an aquatic plant system offers good performance in terms of organics and nutrient removal for relatively low operation and maintenance costs. The results indicate that under appropriate operational conditions, the effluent quality is within the limits set by Korean discharge criteria.