• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
• /
• v.13 no.4
• /
• pp.335-340
• /
• 2010

The paper describes the objectives of Yellow Sea Large Marine Ecosystem (YSLME) project, focusing on procedural and practical aspects. YSLME is a highly productive sea yet possibly one of the most impacted large marine ecosystems, in terms of anthropogenic stressors, due the enormous coastal population. The aim of the YSLME project is the reduction of ecosystem stress through identification of the environmental problems in the Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) that are then addressed in the Strategic Action Programme (SAP). One of the major problems found to be affecting biological diversity is habitat modification through wetland reclamation, conversion and degradation. Since the early 1900's more than 40% of intertidal wetlands have been reclaimed in Korea, and 60% of Chinese coastal wetlands have been converted or reclaimed. Damaging fishing practices, pollution and coastal eutrophication have further degraded the coastal environment reducing the biological diversity. To combat this loss, the YSLME project has mounted a public awareness campaign to raise environmental consciousness targeted at all different levels of society, from politicians at parliamentary workshops, local government officer training events, scientific conferences and involvement of scientists in the project research and reporting, to university and high school students in our visiting internship programmes and environmental camps. We have also built networks through the Yellow Sea Partnership and by liaising and working with other environmental organizations and NGOs. NGO's are recognised as important partners in the environmental conservation as they already have extensive local networks that can be lacking in international organisations. Effective links have been built with many of these NGOs through the small grants programme. Working with WWF's YSESP project and other academic and research institutions we have conducted our own biodiversity assessments that have contributed to the science-based development of the SAP for the YSLME. Our regional targets for biodiversity outlined in the SAP include: Improvements in the densities, distributions and genetic diversity of current populations of all living organisms including endangered and endemic species; Maintenance of habitats according to standards and regulations of 2007; and a reduction in the risk of introduced species. Endorsement of the SAP and its successful implementation, during the proposed second phase of the YSLEM project, will ensure that biological diversity is here to benefit future generations.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.309-319
• /
• 2008

Roads are an indicator of anthropogenic activity causing ecosystem disturbances and often lead to habitat fragmentation, habitat loss, and habitat isolation. The Hallasan National Park(153.4$km^2$) on Jeju Island being distinguished for its unique geology, topography, and biota has also been designated as a core area of UNESCO Man and the Biosphere(MAB) Reserve. Although the high conservation value of this park has contributed to a rapid growth of tourists and road construction, landscape changes due to roads have not been examined yet. We used GIS systems to examine the fragmentation pattern caused by roads, in relation to its zonation, elevation, and vegetation. When a buffer was applied to roads(112m width for paved roads and 60m width for both legal and illegal trails), the park consisted of 100 fragments. The ten fragments generated after applying buffer to only paved roads and legal trails ranged from $0.002km^2$ to $38.2km^2$ with a mean of $14.2km^2$, and about 7% of both nature conservation zone and nature environment zone of the park were edge. Fragments in both east and west ends of the park and around the summit exhibited relatively high shape indices with means of 5.19(for 100 fragments) and 7.22(for 10 fragments). All five legal trails are connected to the pit crater of the mountain and vegetation changed from broadleaf forests and conifer forests to grasslands with elevation, consequently resulting in dramatic fragment size reduction in grasslands at high elevation, in particular above 1,400m, where endemic and alpine plants are abundant. These results show that in Hallasan National Park the risks of habitat deterioration and habitat loss due to fragmentation may be more severe in the nature conservation zone dominated by Baengnokdam than in the nature environment zone. Therefore, current road networks of the park appear to fall short of the goal of the national park for ecosystem conservation and protection. Considering that the entire Hallasan National Park also serves as a MAB core area, conservation efforts should focus, first of all, on park rezoning and road management to mitigate habitat fragmentation.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
• /
• v.59 no.1
• /
• pp.25-35
• /
• 2020

The striped fruit fly, Zeugodacus scutellata, is endemic in Korea, but it has been regarded as one of the serious quarantine pests throughout the world. Sterile insect release technique (SIT) has been used to eradicate quarantine fruit flies. This study developed a technique to generate sterile males and applied SIT to control Z. scutellata. First of all, the reproductive systems of Z. scutellata adults were examined with fluorescent microscope. Polytrophic ovaries comprises of around 100 follicles with developing oocytes. Each follicle contains an oocyte with several nurse cells and are surrounded with follicular epithelium. Oocyte development began at 10 days after adult emergence (DAE) and formed chorionated oocytes after 20 DAE. On the other hand, male testes were well developed just after adult emergence. The vas deferens was filled with motile sperms. To generate sterile males, different doses (0~1,000 Gy) doses of electron beam were irradiated to 3~5 days old pupae of Z. scutellata. When male pupae were irradiated with electron beam at 200 Gy, they developed and mated with females without any significant difference compared to untreated males. Although the untreated females mated with the 200 Gy-irradiated males laid eggs, no eggs did not hatch. The 200 Gy-irradiated males were then applied to untreated male and female flies in a density ratio of 1:9 (untreated males : treated males). The laid eggs suffered significant infertility. These results suggest that electron beam-irradiated pupae at 200 Gy resulted in male sterility and the resulting males would be applied to SIT.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.26 no.6
• /
• pp.892-901
• /
• 2012

The purpose of this research was to analyze fish fauna, distribution patterns, and fish community structures in the Juksan-Weir regions of upper weir(R-UW) and lower weir(R-LW), which was constructed in 2011 on Yeongsan River watershed. Our outcomes will provide valuable information in the impact analysis of weir constructions next decades, even if the current research is limited to distributions and fauna studies of fishes. The fishes observed were 8 family and 30 species in all the sites, and the number of the species in the regions of R-UW and R-LW was 23(938 individuals) and 27(1,680 individuals), respectively, indicating greater abundance in the lower region of Juksan-Weir. Most dominant species was Opsarichthys uncirostris amurensis with relative abundance of 42%, and this species had greater abundance in the R-LW(49%) than in the R-UW(30%). Coilia nasus, was the migratory fish sampled in this region and had no differences of abundance between the two regions. The extic species observed were Carassius cuvieri, Lepomis macrochirus, and Micropterus salmoides. The two formers of Carassius cuvieri(1.2%) and Lepomis macrochirus(3.7%) dominated in the R-UW, whereas Micropterus salmoides had greater dominance in the region of R-LW. According to tolerance guild analysis, the proportion of sensitive species ranged from 0.4 to 0.5%, and that of tolerant species ranged from 65% to 70%, implying a severe pollution of nutrients and organic matters in the water body. In the mean time, according to trophic guild analysis, the proportion of carnivores(57 - 77%) was evidently higher than that of insectivores(10 - 20%), indicating a dominance of the carnivores. Especially, high abundance of the bass, exotic species, may disturb the fish overall food chain, so the efficient ecosystem management may be required for the conservation of endemic species. When we examined fish data files of last 60 years, the species of Culter brevicauda, designated as endangered species, was observed firstly in our research area and the total number was 5 individuals(0.2% of the total). So, this region observed should be conserved as a protection zone and further monitoring studies should be done in the future.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.13 no.1
• /
• pp.40-49
• /
• 2001

The ichthyofauna and fish community of the Dongjin River system were surveyed at 21 sites from October 1998 to September 1999. We confirmed the presence of 53 species in 14 families belonging to seven orders. Thirty-two species of cyprinid fishes accounted for 60.4% of the total, four species of cobitid and gobiid fishes 7.5% of the total, and two species of bagrid and centrarchid fishes for 3.8% of the total. The dominant species in the Dongjin River system was Zacco platypus (relative abundant 26.0%), the subdominant species was Carassius auratus (14.7%). The dominant and subdominant species in each stream of the Dongjin River system were determined. In the Dongjin River, the dominant species was Z. platypus (40.6%), the subdominant Acheilognathus lanceolatus (20.5%); in Wonpyeong stream, Pseudorasbora parva (22.6%) and Hypomesus olidus (13.2%); in Gobu stream C. auratus (67.5%) and Cyprinnus carpio (15.4%). Fourteen of the 53 species from the the Dongjin River system comprised 28.6% of the total Korean endemic species; seven rare species accounted for less than 0.1% of the total. Four exotic fish species were found: Cyprinus carpio (Islaeli carp), Carassius cuvieri, Micropterus salmoides and Lepomis macrochirus. The species dominance, diversity, and evenness index of the fish community from the Wonpyeong stream were 0.12, 1.08, and 0.91, respectively, indicating better conditions than those of the Dongjin River and the Gobu stream. The fish community of the Wonpyeong stream showed closer relationship to that of the Dongjin River than to that of the Gobu stream.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.18-34
• /
• 2008

Based on external morphology, each of five species can be classified into three groups: 1) B. falcatum group (B. falcatum, B. scorzonerifolium), 2) B. euphorbioides group (B. euphorbioides) and 3) B. longiradiatum group (B. longiradiatum, B. latissimum). B. falcatum group has cauline leaves linear or lanceolate in shape and attenuate at base and not surrounding the stem. In contrast, B. longiradiatum group and B. euphorbioides group have cauline leaves ovate, lanceolate or panduriform in shape and auriculate or cordate at base and completely surrounding the stem. The inflorescence is basically compound umbels terminated at the apex of stem. But B. euphorbioides group is small in size and pedicels are rather short and the number of the pedicel is ca. 20. On the other hand, B. longiradiatum and B. falcatum groups are large in size and their pedicels are long and the number of the pedicel is around 10. The pore of pollen aperture of B. longiradiatum and B. latissimum is partially projected or not while those of B. falcatum group and B. euphorbioides is usually remarkably projected. The number of somatic chromosomes was counted as 2n=20 in B. falcatum, 2n=12 in B. scorzonerifolium and B. longiradiatum, and 2n=16 in B. euphorbioides and B. latissimum. Although chromosome numbers of B. euphorbioides and B. latissimum are the same, the two species are not likely to relate because the karyotypes of the two species are different from each other. Based on these observations, it can be concluded that B. latissimum is most closely related to B. longiradiatum. However, molecular data indicated that the species is probably related to B. bicaule distributed in central Siberia. In terms of conservation of B. latissimum, overexploitation by human and grazing by goat are most threatened factors.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
• /
• v.85 no.4
• /
• pp.605-618
• /
• 1996

Namsan area supposed to be a disturbed ecosystem and Kwangneung area considered to be a natural ecosystem were selected for the study. On the basis of the plant species composition, the study was planned to examine structural plant species diversity so as to provide basic ecological information to restore more stable and healthy ecosystem for Namsan. The stratified sample plot method was employed for collecting vegetation data, establishing $20m{\times}20m$ square plots for overstory trees, $4m{\times}4m$ plots for mid-story woody plants, and $1m{\times}1m$ plots for ground vegetation. The herbaceous plants were periodically investigated by taking into account for seasonal(spring, summer, and autumn) variation in presence. Ecological attributes were evaluated through analyzing species composition, species diversity, life forms, interspecies association, and growing habitat for various forest types, vertical layers, life forms, and seasonal variation. Even though the species diversity index of canopy trees in the deciduous forest of Namsan was estimated higher than that of the natural forest of Kwangneung, overall species diversity of plants in Kwangneung area was greater than that in Namsan area. Herbaceous plants presented in Kwangneung but not in Namsan were Aconitum pseudo-proliferum, Botrychium virginianum, Dryopteris tokyoensis, Scutellaria insignis, Tricyrtis dilatata, and Viola kamibayashii, most of them were endemic species of Kwangneung. Elaeagnus umbellata, and Prunes padus var. seoulensis were found only in Namsan. Such species typically composed of the natural deciduous forest as Acer mono, Acer triflorum, Carpinus laxiflora, Cornus controversa, Fraxinus mandshurica, and Phellodendron amurertse were limited growing in a small size of area in Namsan. The future project should be made for encouraging the growth and expansion of the distribution of such species to restore biodiversity in Namsan area.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.31 no.4
• /
• pp.222-234
• /
• 2019

Fish community characteristics and habitat aspects of endangered species, Pseudopungtungia tenuicorpa and Acheilognathus signifer were investigated in the Hwayangcheon Stream of Songnisan National Park, a tributary of the Hangang River, Korea from April to October 2018. During this period, there were 29 species of 8 families collected from 11 survey stations using kick nets, cast nets long bag set nets. The dominant and subdominant species were Zacco koreanus (38.81%) and Rhynchocypris oxycephalus (16.64%), respectively. The next most abundant species were Z. platypus (14.28%), Pungtungia herzi (6.92%), Hemibarbus longirostris (4.52%), Pseudogobio esocinus (3.51%), A. signifer (2.31%) and P. tenuicorpa (1.90%). Among the fish collected, 18 species (62.1%) were Korean endemic species. Endangered species were A. signifer, P. tenuicorpa and Gobiobotia brevibarba. From upstream to downstream, the dominance index has gradually decreased, but number of species and individuals, diversity and evenness has gradually increased. Also, river health (index of biological integrity) is assessed as good (St. 1~8) and very good (St. 9~11). Fish communities were divided into four sections by the similarity index based on species and their numbers, i.e., upper section (St. 1~2, 4~5), upper-middle section (St. 3, 6), middle section (St. 7~9) and lower section (St. 10~11). Endangered species, Pseudopungtungia tenuicorpa inhabited in mostly lower section (St. 10~11) with rock and boulder bottoms, and age groups in April estimated from total length indicated that the 44~61 mm group is 1 year old, the 66~81 mm group is 2 years old, the 88~99 mm group is 3 years old, and the 104~107 mm group is more than 4 years old. Also, endangered species, A. signifer inhabited in middle-lower section (St. 7~11) with boulder and cobble bottoms and slow velocity, which the place inhabited by water plants. Meanwhile, their age structure in April estimated from total length indicated that the 30~43 mm group is 1 year old, the 48~58 mm group is 2 years old, the 62~77 mm group is 3 years old, and the 84~100 mm group is more than 4 years old. The sex ratio of female (47) to male (42) was 1 : 0.89.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.30 no.5
• /
• pp.874-887
• /
• 2016

We surveyed bimonthly from April to October 2015 to understand the fish fauna and community structure in Wangpicheon. The collected species during the survey period were 40 species belonging to 15 families. Dominant species by number were Zacco koreanus (31.3%) and Rhynchocypris oxycephalus (14.7%). In biomass, the dominant species were Z. koreanus (29.2%) and Coreoperca herzi (8.6%). Also, nine endemic species (22.5%) including Squalidus multimaculatus and two endangered species (Lethenteron reissneri, Cottus koreanus) were identified. It was identified one introduced species (Oncorhynchus mykiss) from foreign countries for aquaculture. Compared with previous data, nine species were newly identified including L. reissneri, S. gracilis majimae, Pseudobagrus fulvidraco, O. mykiss, Chelon haematocheilus, Siniperca scherzeri, Acanthogobius lactipes, Luciogobius guttatus and Channa argus. Seven species (Rhodeus ocellatus, S. gracilis majimae, Hemibarbus longirostris, Pseudogobio esocinus, Microphysogobio yaluensis, Hemiculter eigenmanni and Cobitis hankugensis) introduced from other native waters in Korea were estimated. According to the analysis of the habitat characteristics of major migratory species (Tribolodon hakonensis, O. keta and Plecoglossus altivelis), O. keta was observed at station 11 and T. hakonensis at station 7, 10 and 11. These fishes have been mainly identified in the downstream. However P. altivelis was widely distributed from station 3 to 11. In the comparison of average standard length of P. altivelis at each station during the same period, populations collected from station 3 and 5 which are mid-upper area of the stream were $125.8{\pm}34.2mm$. Their growth was good compared with those collected from station 8 and 11 (mid-lower area): $80.2{\pm}16.6mm$. This difference in length comes from the artificial structures including weir, thus it is necessary to create a fishway that enables P. altivelis to pass around barriers for free movement and resource management.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
• /
• v.18 no.1
• /
• pp.85-116
• /
• 2005

Gyeryongsan(845m) is located at $36^{\circ}\;18'\;02'\;-36^{\circ}\;23'\;38'$ in latitude, at $127^{\circ}\;11'\;60'-127^{\circ}\;17'\;86'$ in longitude and on Nonsan City and Gongju City in Chungnam Province. Gyeryongsan shows the typical vegetation patterns including the middle area of temperate region represented by the secondary forests of Quercus mongotica and Q. serrata. And we tried to discuss on the distribution and availability of vascular plants including economical plants. The results of plant collection and their investigation from April in 1998 to October in 2002 are as follows : The vascular plants consist of total 684 taxa; 3 hybrids, 12 forms, 84 varieties, 1 subspecies, 584 species, 357 genera, 100 families, 34 orders, 4 classes, 3 subphyla. In this area useful resources plants were 277 taxa$(40.5\%)$ forage source, 261 taxa$(38.2\%)$ edible source, 204 taxa$(29.8\%)$ medicinal source, 80 taxa$(11.7\%)$ ornamental source, 20 taxa$(2.9\%)$ timber source, 3 taxa$(0.4\%)$ industrial raw material source respectively. Also, the Korean endemic plants are 29 taxa($4.2\%$ among total 684 taxa); 5 varieties, 24 species, 27 genera, 20 families. And rare and endangered plants are 2 taxa; Paeonia obovate, Gastrodia elata. Also, the naturalized plants are 31 taxa($4.5\%$ among total 684 taxa and $13.7\%$ among the total naturalized plants in Korea).