• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.19 no.1 s.29
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• pp.104-115
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• 2006

This study was conducted to investigate whether attitudes and recognitions of middle and high school students regarding environmental concerns were improved after anuran call monitoring. It was a step toward monitoring local environmental changes with anuran calls. Three-striped pond frogs (Rana nigromaculata), Bullfrogs (R. catesbeiana), and Narrow-mouthed toads (Kaloula borealis) were surveyed to determine local abundance and distribution of them in 12 study sites using their advertising calls. A published booklet, which contains morphological, physiological, ecological, and acoustic information on amphibian species and methods of monitoring anuran calls were provided to monitoring students for identifying the three species. Pretest-posttest were conducted before and after monitoring from 10 April to 28 August in 2005 to determine how the monitoring students changed their attitudes on environmental issues, increased knowledges on amphibians, and improved the understanding on the cause and effect of declining amphibian populations. The amphibian monitoring program was effective to improve the students' attitudes towards conserving environments as well as the students' knowledge on general behavior and ecology of various amphibian species although their understanding about various environmental problems was not. In addition, the program increased the students' understanding on the problems of declining amphibian populations.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.85-92
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• 2022

The amphibian breeding habitat is confirmed by mating call. In some cases, the researcher directly identifies the amphibian individual, but in order to designate the habitat, it is necessary to map the mating call region of the amphibian population. Until now, it has been a popular methodology for researchers to hear mating calls and outline their breeding habitats. To improve this subjective methodology, we developed a technique for mapping mating call regions using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The technology uses a UAV, fitted with a sound recorder to record ground mating calls as it flies over an amphibian habitat. The core technology is to synchronize the recorded sound pressure with the flight log of the UAV and predict the sound pressure in a two-dimensional plane with probability density. For a demonstration study of this technology, artificial mating call was generated by a potable speaker on the ground and recorded by a UAV. Then, the recorded sound data was processed with an algorithm developed by us to map mating calls. As a result of the study, the correlation coefficient between the artificial mating call on the ground and the mating call map measured by the UAV was R=0.77. This correlation coefficient proves that our UAV recording system is sufficiently capable of detecting amphibian mating call regions.

• Proceedings of the National Institute of Ecology of the Republic of Korea
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.55-59
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• 2024

The remarkable economic growth achieved in the modern era has revitalized various industries, including pet trade. More than 2,000 species of non-native species have been introduced to South Korea and approximately 7.7 tonnes of alien turtles are imported annually. Turtles belonging to the family Kinosternidae. They are mostly small and popular pets, although they are designated as Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) species. In the present study, we present the first two species of musk turtles found in the wild in South Korea. On April 5, 2023 and July 8, 2023, an eastern musk turtle (Sternotherus odoratus) and a razorbacked musk turtle (Sternotherus carinatus) were captured in Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do and Jung-gu, Daejeon, respectively. The carapace length was 88.6 mm for S. odoratus and 105.68 mm for S. carinatus. They were identified based on their morphological characteristics and mtDNA cytochrome b gene. These turtles were found in waterfront areas with over 1.4 million annual visitors. Both sites were found to have threatened amphibians and reptiles. There is an urgent need to continue monitoring and conducting risk assessments for the protection of endemic species in Korea.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.11
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• pp.1412-1419
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• 2023

Retroviral integration into ancient vertebrate genomes left traces that can shed light on the early history of viruses. In this study, we explored the early evolution of retroviruses by isolating nine Spuma endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) and one Epsilon ERV from the genomes of Agnatha and Chondrichthyes. Phylogenetic analysis of protein sequences revealed a striking pattern of co-evolution between jawless fish ERV and their host, while shark ERV underwent ancient cross-class viral transmission with jawless fish, ray-finned fish, and amphibians. Nucleotide sequence analysis showed that jawless fish ERV emerged in the Palaeozoic period, relatively later than ray-finned fish ERV. Moreover, codon analysis suggested that the jawless fish ERV employed an infection strategy that mimics the host codon. The genealogical diversity of ERVs in the jawless fish genome highlights the importance of studying different viral species. Overall, our findings provide valuable insights into the evolution of retroviruses and their interactions with their hosts.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.93-105
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• 2004

The Shihwa wetland, a newly developed constructed wetland prototype in Korea with an area of approximately 104 ha, was established to improve the water quality severely polluted inflow streams into Lake Shihwa. Because this wetland could play a role as an ecological park in addition to improving the water quality, an ecological impact of the Shihwa constructed wetland has been a national concern. This paper focused on reporting the survey results for fauna among the entire investigation results for 3 years. A total of 129 terrestrial insect species have been observed from August 2001 to June 2002. Among them, Ischnura asiatica (Brauer) (order Odonata), Scymnus species (order Coleoptera) and Orthopteran species were frequently found in the reed bushes. A total of 77 bird species were recorded in a seasonal count, the maximum number of species was 34 in winter and the maximum number of individuals was 4,599 in summer. For the freshwater fish, only 4 species were found in 2000, however in 2001 and 2002, 12 species and 459 individuals were collected at four survey points. Among these 12 species, the dominant species were Mugil cephalus(36%), followed by Carassius auratus (25%) and Rhinogobius brunneus (22%). Meanwhile,12 individuals of Oryzias latipes were observed nearby, mostly downstream of the wetland. For the Herpetofauna at four survey areas, 3 species of amphibians and 3 species of reptiles were recorded. Because of remaining salinity in the soil of the Shiwha constructed wetland, Herpetofauna inflow to the wetland was scanty and mainly inhabited the upstream area. A total of 8 mammal species were recorded. Small-sized species were the striped field mouse, the Ussurian harvest-mouse, the Manchurian reed vole and the brown rat. Middle- and large-sized species were Korean water-deer, Korean raccoon dogs, Korean yellow weasels and feral cats.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.60 no.4
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• pp.289-293
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• 2022

Blastocystis is a genus of unicellular heterokont parasites belonging to a group of organisms known as Stramenopiles, which includes algae, diatoms, and water molds. Blastocystis includes several species that habitat in the gastrointestinal tracts of organisms as diverse as humans, farm animals, birds, rodents, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and cockroaches. It is important to public health and distributed globally, but its prevalence in dogs in Korea has not been reported to date. Here, we collected 787 canine fecal samples and assessed Blastocystis infection by age, sex, region, season, and diarrhea symptoms. We determined Blastocystis subtypes using phylogenetic analyses based on 18S rRNA gene sequences. We identified, 10 Blastocystis positive samples (1.3%). A higher proportion of infected dogs was asymptomatic; however, infection rates did not significantly differ according to region, age, sex, and season. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the Blastocystis sp. identified belonged to 4 subtypes (STs), ST1, ST5, ST10, and ST14, thus revealed the genetic diversity of Blastocystis sp. in dogs Korean. This is first report on the presence of Blastocystis sp. in dogs Korean. This study revealed a lower infection rate than expected and differed from previous studies in STs. Further studies are warranted to observe the national infection status of Blastocystis in dogs and the genetic characteristics of this genus.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.480-489
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• 2021

Climate change poses great threats to wildlife populations by decreasing their number and destroying their habitats, jeopardizing biodiversity conservation. Asiatic salamander (Hynobiidae) species are particularly vulnerable to climate change due to their small home range and limited dispersal ability. Thus, this study used one salamander species, the Korean clawed salamander (Onychodactylus koreanus), as a model species and examined their habitat characteristics and current distribution in South Korea to predict its spatial distribution under climate change. As a result, we found that altitude was the most important environmental factor for their spatial distribution and that they showed a dense distribution in high-altitude forest regions such as Gangwon and Gyeongsanbuk provinces. The spatial distribution range and habitat characteristics predicted in the species distribution models were sufficiently in accordance with previous studies on the species. By modeling their distribution changes under two different climate change scenarios, we predicted that the distribution range of the Korean clawed salamander population would decrease by 62.96% under the RCP4.5 scenario and by 98.52% under the RCP8.5 scenario, indicating a sharp reduction due to climate change. The model's AUC value was the highest in the present (0.837), followed by RCP4.5 (0.832) and RCP8.5 (0.807). Our study provides a basic reference for implementing conservation plans for amphibians under climate change. Additional research using various analysis techniques reflecting habitat characteristics and minute habitat factors for the whole life cycle of Korean-tailed salamanders help identify major environmental factors that affect species reduction.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.358-365
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• 2019

We measured the body composition, including bone mineral density (BMD) and food resource availability using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and the carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios of body condition of 4 anuran species(Hyla japonica, Glandirana rugosa, Pelophylax nigromaculatus, Lithobates catesbeianus) in South Korea. Additionally, the carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios were employed to determine the food resource availability of anurans. We figured out the relationship between the body composition, including BMDs and food resource availability. The body composition and BMDs did not differ between male and female while there was difference among the species. Food resource availability and BMDs were the highest in L. catesbeianus, the lowest in H. japonica. BMDs tended to increase with higher food resource availability. Body composition and BMDs, which represent the body condition of an individual, can be used as an ecological indicator to assess the stability of the habitat of anurans.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.89-99
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• 2014

The cultivation of biomass crops is now global demand for decreasing emissions of carbon dioxide ($CO_2$) from fossil fuel. Miscanthus species have been studied as a suitable crop for biomass production, due to its characteristics of fast growth and high biomass. In Korea, Miscanthus species have gained wide attention as an option for biomass production alternative to fossil fuels, recently. New strain of giant Miscanthus has been developed and two large trial sites for the giant Miscanthus production were built in the lower reaches of the Geum River. To evaluate the ecological influence of the giant Miscanthus as an bioenergy crop for the future, we investigated the impact of the construction of the giant Miscanthus production fields on the biota and also compared it with biota in paddy fields near the study sites. The biota including plants, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, avifauna, insects, and bugs was investigated. The plant diversity of the giant Miscanthus production fields was poorer than the paddy fields because the high height of the giant Miscanthus might hinder the growth of other plants. However, the giant Miscanthus production fields serves habitat to animals, leading to rich diversity of animals including avifauna, insects, and bugs. The rich diversity of the animals in the giant Miscanthus production fields coincides with the fact that the giant Miscanthus was grown without any pesticide, herbicide, and fertilizer. This study showed that the giant Miscanthus can influence on biota and further long term study is needed to elucidate the interaction between the diversity of biota and the giant Miscanthus.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.32-42
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• 2004

This study aims at establishing an ecological planning for road construction. which is considered to be a main cause of damage to the natural environment in Korea. This study focuses on the Pyungtak-Eumsung Highway development project. It considers the ecological factors and status of the site and its surrounding area. The study site is a four-way highway with a width of 23.4m and a length of 5.7km that spans from Hyungok-ri, Anseong City, Kyeonggi Province to Jukhyun-ri, Jincheon-gun, Chungbuk Province. The objective of the plan is "the establishment of an eco-road in harmony with nature." The plan is divided into five detailed goals: 1) restoration of river morphology and ecosystem through ecological planning; 2) establishment of wet biotopes; 3) construction of ecological corridors; 4) restoration of damaged forest ecosystems; and 5) ecological restoration of the roadside slopes that are linked with the surrounding forest. A master plan has been developed based on the detailed goals. The master plan involves: 1) establishment of a natural river, wet biotopes, and ecological corridors that facilitate the movement of amphibians, wild fowls, mammalians and fish; 2) development of a planting plan for the visitor center, the tunnel entrance, and soundproof banks; and 3) the presentation of a planting model for restoring roadside slopes that are connected to the surrounding forest. The eco-road plan needs to entail ecological conservation and restoration plans. In addition, a monitoring plan for ecological corridors and habitats should be included in the comprehensive plans, along with the continuous development of environmentally friendly technologies.