• Title/Summary/Keyword: Endangered species

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Evaluation of Alternative Habitats Using Habitat Suitability Index Model of Lutra lutra in Banbyeoncheon Stream (반변천 일대 수달 서식지 적합성 지수(HSI) 모델을 활용한 대체서식지 평가)

  • Shim, Yun-Jin;Kim, Sun-Ryoung;Yoon, Kwang-Bae;Jung, Jin-Woo;Park, Seon-Uk;Park, Yong-Su
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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    • v.23 no.1
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    • pp.63-76
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    • 2020
  • This study was conducted to quantitatively evaluate and analyze the alternative habitats using the HSI(Habitat Suitability Index) model of Lutra lutra in Banbyeoncheon Stream. Six variables were selected as habitat variables for Lutra lutra, including distance from waterfront, land cover within 1km from waterfront, presence of alluvial island, area of inland water and wetland, distance from roads and urbanized arid areas, and distance from aquaculture farm. The SI(Suitability Index) model and HSI model were developed based on the existing literature of Lutra lutra, the results of field surveys and expert opinions, and applied to the alternative habitats to examine the applicability of the HSI model. The results of this study can provide information on habitat evaluation to prevent the extinction of endangered Lutra lutra. In particular, it is highly applicable to the selection and evaluation of alternative habitats for Lutra lutra.

Vascular Plants of Hyangro-bong in Gangwon-do, Korea

  • Kwon, Mi Jeong;Han, Gab-Soo
    • Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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    • v.31 no.2
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    • pp.136-148
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    • 2015
  • Hyangro-bong is located on the northern side of the civilian access control line and therefore has gone through natural ecological succession without human interference. Currently, it forms a distinctive natural ecosystem in which rare wild animals and plants are various. It is located in the Baekdudaegan mountain system and plays an ecologically important role as a bridge that connects the Geumgang mountain and Seorak mountain. This study investigated the flora of the eastern parts, Forest Genetic Resources Reserve Area, of Hyangro-bong. A total of 363 vascular plants that belonged to 77 families, 206 genera, 310 species, 3 subspecies, and 47 varieties were found in the study area. Rare and endangered plants identified in this study included the critically endangered Swertia wilfordii and endangered Irisuniflora var. caricina. Furthermore, 4 vulnerable species, Hanabusaya asiatica, Codonopsis pilosula, Leontopodium japonicum, and Taxus cuspidata, were found. A total of 7 families and 14 taxa including Aconitum pseudolaeve and Clematis fusca var. coreana were confirmed as endemic plants. Naturalized plants belonging to 4 families, 11 genera, and 13 species were distributed along the Hyangro-bong forest roads.

Isolation and characterization of EST-SSR markers for Astilboides tabularis (Saxifragaceae), endangered species in Korea

  • JUNG, Eui-Kwon;KANG, Dae-Hyun;YOO, Ki-Oug;KWAK, Myounghai;KIM, Young-Dong;KIM, Bo-Yun
    • Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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    • v.48 no.3
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    • pp.195-200
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    • 2018
  • Genetic assessments of rare and endangered species are among the first steps necessary to establish the proper management of natural populations. Transcriptome-derived single-sequence repeat markers were developed for the Korean endangered species Astilboides tabularis (Saxifragaceae) to assess its genetic diversity. A total of 96 candidate microsatellite loci were isolated based on transcriptome data using Illumina pair end sequencing. Of these, 26 were polymorphic, with one to five alleles per locus in 60 individuals from three populations of A. tabularis. The observed and expected heterozygosity per locus ranged from 0.000 to 0.950 and from 0.000 to 0.741, respectively. These polymorphic transcriptome-derived simple sequence repeat markers would be invaluable for future studies of population genetics and for ecological conservation of the endangered species A. tabularis.

Identifying Degradation Causes of Endangered Freshwater Fish, Microphysogobio rapidus Using Habitat-Environmental Characteristics (멸종위기 야생생물 I급 여울마자 서식지 환경 특성 파악을 통한 훼손 원인 분석)

  • Ju-Duk Yoon;Keun-Sik Kim;Chang-Deuk Park;Dong-Won Kang;Heung-Heon Lee;Chi-Hong Lim;Nam-Shin Kim
    • Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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    • v.56 no.3
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    • pp.229-241
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    • 2023
  • Microphysogobio rapidus is designated as endangered species class I by Ministry of Environment, and its distribution and population have been gradually declining, and it is now limited to the Nam River and some tributary streams of the Nakdong River Watershed. For the restoration of this highly endangered species, it is important to identify the causes of the decline and establish appropriate restoration plans. However, due to lack of basic data and ecological research, most steps are stagnant. Therefore, in this study, we identified the differences in the physical, biological, and sociological habitats between current and past distributed sites through field surveys and literature reviews. As a result of the field survey, there were differences in conductivity between the current and past distributed sites, and fish communities were also showed differences. The literature data also showed that the physico-chemical values of the past distributed sites were generally unfavorable, which generated negative consequences on biological factors. In particular, the effects of urbanization were found to be a major factor affecting the habitat of M. rapidus. Habitat stabilization is crucial for the recovery of this endangered species. However, in the past distributed sites, disturbances such as stream development and weir construction have altered streams physico-chemically and result in changes of M. rapidus. Therefore, a comprehensive plan that considers both stream connectivity and water quality is needed to manage and restore the habitat of M. rapidus.

Distributions of Endangered Fish Species and Their Relations to Chemical Water Quality-Ecological Stream Health in Geum-River Watershed (금강 대권역 대표 멸종위기 담수어류의 분포 특성 및 이화학적 수질-하천 생태건강도와의 관계분석)

  • Lee, Sang-Jae;An, Kwang Guk
    • Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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    • v.30 no.6
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    • pp.986-995
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    • 2016
  • The objective of this study was to analyze the distribution of endangered fish species and elucidate their relations on chemical water quality, physical habitat conditions and ecological stream health. The dominant species in the watershed was Pseudopungtungia nigra (Pn), Gobiobotia macrocephala (Gm), Gobiobotia brevibarba (Gb), Liobagrus obesus (Lo), and Iksookimia choii (Ic) in the order. The species of Pn designated as "critical endangered species (I) (CER)", was most widely distributed species among the endangered species, so the designation of the species should be re-evaluated. The endangered species was most popular (4 species, 384 individuals) in the Cho-River region of eighteen lotic regions. According to the analysis of chemical tolerance limits in the habitats with endangered fish species, biological oxygen demand (BOD) and total phosphorus (TP) was analyzed as "very good" (Ia) and "good condition" in the chemical criteria of the Ministry of Environment, Korea. Also, chemical conditions, based on ammonia-N ($NH_{4+}$), total nitrogen (TN), phosphate-P ($PO_{4^-}P$) were much better in the habitat with endangered species (Hw) than the habitat without endangered species (Ho). In the meantime, the species of Ic showed wide ranges on the chemical tolerance, so physical habitat conditions, such as the size of substrate particles (sand) and hydrological regime, were considered as more important factors than the chemical water quality, if the water quality is not largely degraded. The endangered species were also more distributed in the high-order (4-6) streams than the low-order (1-3) streams. The evaluation of ecological stream health, based on multi-metric model of the Index of Biological Integrity (IBI), showed the large difference between the Hw (21.6, fair condition)and Ho (30.5, good condition), indicating that the habitat maintained well chemically and physically had higher distributions of endangered species. Overall, the designation of CER on the Pn should be re-evaluated due to wide-distributions, and the protections from water pollution and the habitat conservations on the endangered species are necessary in the watershed.

Genetic Variation and Conservation of the Endangered Species Cotoneaster wilsonii (Rosaceae) from Ulleung Island

  • Park, Jiwon;Lee, Junsoo;So, Soonku;Kim, Muyeol
    • Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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    • v.39 no.3
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    • pp.125-129
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    • 2009
  • The genetic diversity plays a significant role in determining a species' survival and perseverance. Endangered species often lack genetic variation, which makes them vulnerable to numerous dangers of extinction including selection, genetic drifts and human interference. Knowing an endangered species' genetic background greatly enhances conservation efforts since it reveals why, what and how to conserve that species. Cotoneaster wilsonii is an endangered plant species endemic to Ulleung island, but not enough genetic research has been done on this taxon for its effective conservation plans. In this study, three populations of C. wilsonii in Ulleung island underwent allozyme analysis through starch gel electrophoresis. 10 loci were analyzed and F-statistics was calculated. Overall data indicated that C. wilsonii possessed low genetic diversity with intense inbreeding, heterozygote deficiency and low differentiation among populations. These results implied that C. wilsonii was recently introduced to the Ulleung island from ancestor species, and did not have much time to differentiate. Current status of C. wilsonii habitats is very fragile and vulnerable, with increasing tourism constantly threatening the species' survival. It is very likely that C. wilsonii will become extinct in near future unless organized conservation protects its populations and genetic diversity.

Distribution of Rhizosphere and Endosphere Fungi on the First-Class Endangered Plant Cypripedium japonicum

  • Gang, Geun-Hye;Cho, Gyeongjun;Kwak, Youn-Sig;Park, Eun-Hee
    • Mycobiology
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    • v.45 no.2
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    • pp.97-100
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    • 2017
  • Endangered native plant habitats and populations are rapidly disappearing because of climate and environmental changes. As a representative, the abundance of the first-class endangered wild plant, Cypripedium japonicum, has been rapidly decreasing in Korea. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the distribution of rhizosphere and endophytic fungi on C. japonicum in its native habitat. A total of 440 rhizosphere and 79 endosphere fungi isolates were isolated and identified on the basis of their molecular characteristics. Sixty-five genera and 119 fungi species were identified in this study. The genus Trichoderma showed the highest abundance among both rhizosphere and endosphere fungi. Mortierella, Hypocrea, and Penicillium spp. were also relatively dominant species on C. japonicum. The community structures of rhizosphere and endosphere fungi were similar, but endosphere fungi showed greater diversity.

Analysis of Sensitivity and Vulnerability of Endangered Wild Animals to Global Warming (지구 온난화에 따른 국내 멸종위기 야생동물의 민감도 및 취약성 분석)

  • Kim, Jin-Yong;Hong, Seongbum;Shin, Man-Seok
    • Journal of Climate Change Research
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    • v.9 no.3
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    • pp.235-243
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    • 2018
  • Loss of favorable habitats for species due to temperature increase is one of the main concerns of climate change on the ecosystem, and endangered species might be much more sensitive to such unfavorable changes. This study aimed to analyze the impact of future climate change on endangered wild animals in South Korea by investigating thermal sensitivity and vulnerability to temperature increase. We determined thermal sensitivity by testing normality in species distribution according to temperature. Then, we defined the vulnerability when the future temperature range of South Korea completely deviate from the current temperature range of species distribution. We identified 13 species with higher thermal sensitivity. Based on IPCC future scenarios RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, the number of species vulnerable to future warming doubled from 3 under RCP4.5 to 7 under the RCP8.5 scenario. The species anticipated to be at risk under RCP 8.5 are flying squirrel (Pteromys volans aluco), ural owl (Pteromys volans aluco), black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius), tawny owl (Strix aluco), watercock (Gallicrex cinerea), schrenck?s bittern (Ixobrychus eurhythmus), and fairy pitta (Pitta nympha). The other 10 species showing very narrow temperature ranges even without normal distributions and out of the future temperature range may also need to be treated as vulnerable species, considering the inevitable observation scarcity of such endangered species.

Preservation Value of Endangered Alpine Coniferous Species (멸종위기 고산지역 침엽수종 보전가치 평가)

  • Sang-Hyun Lee;Dong-Hyoung Lee;Jun-Gi Byeon
    • Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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    • v.112 no.3
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    • pp.322-330
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    • 2023
  • Amid the recent intensification of climate change, the decline of subalpine coniferous species is evident. Accordingly, the Korea Forest Service is conducting research to establish conservation measures, identify the causes of the decline of subalpine coniferous species, and establish conservation strategies for seven species of conifers in the alpine region. This study used an economic value evaluation method to present objective data to inform the need for and value of conservation of endangered coniferous species through the recognition of endangered coniferous species and evaluation of conservation value among coniferous species conservation strategies in endangered alpine areas. A contingent valuation method was applied. As a result, the estimated conservation value per household of endangered alpine coniferous species was 49,181 won.

A Basic Research for the Development of Habitat Suitability Index Model of Pelophylax chosenicus (금개구리 서식지 적합성 지수(HSI) 모델 개발을 위한 기초 연구)

  • Shim, Yun-Jin;Kim, Sun-Ryoung;Yoon, Kwang-Bae;Jung, Jin-Woo;Park, Seon-Uk;Park, Yong-Su
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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    • v.23 no.1
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    • pp.49-62
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    • 2020
  • This study was conducted as a basic study to develop the HSI(Habitat Suitability Index) model of Pelophylax chosenicus based on the research on the ecological and habitat status of Pelophylax chosenicus and the literature research on the HSI model. The habitat variables of Pelophylax chosenicus are the altitude of the spawning pond, the habitat area, the distance from wetland, the soil(aptitude grade for paddy field), the place for eating such as paddy field and wetlands(land cover) and the distance from Predator(Lithobates catesbeianus) distribution area. Based on the existing literature of Pelophylax chosenicus, the results of field surveys and expert opinions, the SI(Suitability Index) model and HSI model were developed and applied to the site to examine the applicability of the HSI model. As a result of application, SI 4 and SI 5 with varying SI values seem to have a major influence on the HSI. In addition, it is considered that the HSI model is an arithmetic mean of SI models, which has a major impact on HSI. The HSI model can be an important basis for the habitat evaluation and restoration model of Pelophylax chosenicus. In particular, it is highly applicable to the selection and evaluation of alternative habitats for Pelophylax chosenicus.