• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2019

Pintail (Anas acuta) is the major wintering bird in South Korea and known as a major mediator of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Pintail migrates long distances between Russian Siberia and Korea. This species prefers a rice paddy area as their winter habitat. The purpose of this study is to provide the data necessary for the conservation and management of bird habitats in Korea by understanding the wintering home-range and habitat of pintail in Korea. We captured six pintails using a cannon-net in the winter of 2015 and attached the GPS-mobile phone based telemetry (WT-300) on them to study the wintering home-range and wintering habitat. We analyzed the tracking location data using ArcGIS 9.0 Animal Movement Extension and calculated Kernel Density Estimation (KDE) and Minimum Convex Polygon (MCP). The average home-range in the wintering ground analyzed by MCP was $677.3km^2$ (SD=130.2, n=6) while the maximum and minimum were $847.7km^2$ and $467.5km^2$, respectively. Extents of home-range analyzed by KDE were $194.7km^2$ (KDE 90%), $77.4km^2$ (KDE 70%), and $35.3km^2$ (KDE 50%). The pintails mostly used both sea and paddy field as habitat in the winter season and utilized paddy fields more during the nighttime and than the daytime. We concluded that the home-range and habitat of pintails in the winter could be used as the reference data for the preservation of species, management of habitats, and coping with a breakout of HPAI.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.25-34
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• 2013

The purpose of this study is to investigate the properties of Menyanthes trifoliata habitat in coastal lagoons. To characterize plant composition in the habitats in the lagoon, the plot sampling method was applied. The depths of water and floating mat were measured. Surface water quality factors including pH, electrical conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), and total dissolved solids (TDS) were measured in the sites. Phosphate, nitrate, ammonium, and major cations were measured in laboratory. The wetland has 78 taxa of wetland plants. The average coverage and density of M. trifoliata was 62.6% and $71.2/m^2$, respectively and Phragmites australis is important associate in Sunyoodam lagoon. The average depths of floating mats were 26.5cm in M. trifoliata and 68.9cm in the P. australis-M. trifoliata communities, and the water depth below the mat was 106.5cm and 17.7cm, respectively. The values of pH, DO, EC and TDS in the water were 5.06, 46.1%, 59.4 ${\mu}s/cm$, and 29.3 mg/L, respectively. The concentrations of phosphate, nitrate, and ammonium showed 47.2, 9321, and 15.9 ${\mu}g/L$, respectively. The concentrations of Ca, K, Na, and Mg had 11.1, 1.5, 15.1, and 11.3 mg/L, respectively. The habitats of M. trifoliata in the lagoon corresponds to a kind of lowland communities in Hewett's classification. To conserve the habitats of M. trifoliata in Sunyoodam lagoon, the supply of open water area, the construction of observation deck, and the block of inflow from the surrounding paddy fields are needed in the future.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.334-343
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• 2014

BACKGROUND: Shorebirds use a variety of wetlands as their stopover sites to replenish energy and nutrient reserves along the migration route. It is increasingly important to understand how birds use the remaining available habitats during migration period, because shorebird stopover sites are often altered and destroyed. Rice fields serve as a major inland stopover site for migrating shorebirds. However, the information on habitat use patterns of shorebirds in rice fields is very limited in Korea. Therefore, we studied the patterns of shorebird abundance and their habitat use in rice fields during spring migration period in western-central Korea. METHODS AND RESULTS: Surveys were conducted at interval of 2-3 days during the spring migration period of 2014 at rice fields of mid-western Korea. We recorded the location of the observed birds on the rice field map according to the local habitat type. The habitat types were divided by physical structure and cultivation methods. Fifteen shorebird species and 7,852 individuals were recorded during the survey period. The number of shorebird species and their abundance began to increase from the beginning of flooding in late-April, and reached a maximum in early-May. After rice transplantation, the number of shorebird species and their abundance dramatically declined. Shorebirds selectively used paddy and levee rather than road and ditch and most species used shallow depth field type. Plowed field types were less attractive to most species. CONCLUSION: Flooding rice fields were functioned as stopover sites for a variety of shorebird species during spring migration period. Furthermore, these results provide that the appropriate agricultural practices can be improving the habitat quality for shorebirds.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.171-180
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• 2012

The field of wildlife habitat conservation research has attracted attention as integrated biodiversity management strategies. Considering the status of the species surveying data and the environmental variables in Korea, the GARP and Maxent models optimized for presence-only data could be one of the most suitable models in habitat modeling. For make sure applicability in the domestic environment we applied the machine learning species distribution model for analyzing habitats of the Korea water deer($Hydropotes$ $inermis$ $argyropus$) in the $Sapgyocheon$ watershed, $Chungcheong$ province. We used the $3^{rd}$ National Natural Environment Survey data and 10 environment variables by literature review for the modelling. Analysis results showed that habitats for the Korea water deer were predicted 16.3%(Maxent) and 27.1%(GARP), respectively. In terms of accuracy(training/test) the Maxent(0.85/0.69) was higher than the GARP(0.65/0.61), and the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient result of the Maxent(${\rho}$=0.71, p<0.01) was higher than the result of GARP(${\rho}$=0.55, p<0.05). However results could be depended on sites and target species, therefore selection of the appropriate model considering on the situation will be important to analyzing habitats.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.359-367
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• 2012

BACKGROUND: As natural wetlands are decreased by increment of human demand, the importance of rice fields as an alternative habitat for waterbirds is well documented. However, the relationship between waterbirds use and management practice of rice fields has not been fully understood. The present study attempted to understand the changes in temporal abundance of waterbirds and their preference for habitat types in rice fields all year round. METHODS AND RESULTS: Waterbirds census were conducted in rice fields around Asan bay in Korea during April 2009-March 2010 and April 2011-March 2012. In the bird counts, the locations of the observed birds on a 1/2,500 map were recorded along with the local habitat type (paddy, ditch, levee, road). Thirty five species of waterbirds recorded in the rice fields during the survey period and three major groups (shorebirds, herons, and waterfowls) were characterized according to season and micro-habitat use. Shorebirds visited a flooded paddy for feeding during their spring migration season (April-May), and herons used the rice field as feeding sites during their breeding periods (April-October). Most waterfowls were observed in a dry paddy to feed a fallen rice seed and stubs during the winter season (September-March). Waterbird groups selectively used micro-habitats in rice field. Shorebirds and waterfowls mainly preferred at rice paddies, while herons were attracted to most habitat types. CONCLUSION(S): Rice fields supported various waterbirds all year round and waterbird communities using the rice fields were dramatically changed according to seasonal change of rice field condition.

• Journal of Marine Life Science
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.31-37
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• 2018

We investigated natural habitat of seagrass and created replacement habitat to monitor for restoration of the habitat which is expected to be damaged at Cheonseong harbor in Busan. Depth of water for natural seagrass habitat at Cheonseong harbor was 1.2~3.1 m and the water temperature was 7.4℃, salt concentration was 29.1 psu and pH was 8.05 in January, 2013. The density of seagrass was 167.1±16.4 shoots m^-2, the total length was 48.5±18.1 cm, the height of sheath was 9.1±2.8 cm and the width of leaf was 4.8±1.1 cm, respectively. We transplanted in December 2014 and monitored the habitat during 9 months after transplanted. In the beginning, the density of seagrass was decreased to 8.5 shoots patch^-1 in January and was increased to 19.0 shoots patch^-1 in April. The total height were 73.3±2.9~121.3±6.1 cm, the length of sheath were 9.6±0.6-21.0±1.2 cm, the width of leaf were 5.7±0.1~6.8±0.2 mm. It showed that all values were increased steadily until July and was decreased rapidly in August. Flowering shoot, which was not observed in the beginning of transplanting, started to be spotted in March and was continued to be seen during the monitoring period. We were able to observe seedling of germinated seagrass in seeds in the replacement habitat next year.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.214-226
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• 2013

The habitats characteristics of Pedicularis ishidoyana were investigated to provide basic data for conservation and restoration. The altitude ranged from 107m to 494m, with inclinations of $5{\sim}20^{\circ}$. As a result of vegetation survey within natural populations, a total of 243 taxa were identified 18 quadrates in 6 natural habitats. The importance value of Pedicularis ishidoyana is 13.2% based on the coverage and frequency of the herb layer with in the populations. NMS analysis, environmental impact of Pedicularis ishidoyana a decisive impact on the habitat factors, the species composition of the woody layer, rather than the species composition of the herb layer can say is more dominant. Preservation of habitat conditions is important for stable maintenance the flora, and the surrounding area including habitats has to be desegnated a protection area for habitats preservation.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.378-384
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• 2019

Red-eared slider, Trachemys scripta elegans, is one of the most famous species to disturb native ecosystems in the world. In South Korea, the species was imported as pet, and now it is found whole of the country. Recent, natural breeding and spreading of the turtle has been reported. In this paper, we investigated the environmental factors to affect the reproduction of T. s. elegans. We surveyed the distribution of the turtle in Jeju island, South Korea, between 2012 to 2017. We compared the land covers and climate of habitats from breeding sites and non-breeding sites. The species was found from 38 sites in Jeju island; 21 of breeding sites and 17 of non-breeding sites. The number of total and only adult turtles was significantly higher in breeding sites than non-breeding sites (P<0.05). In breeding site, the reproduction rate from the farmland was significantly higher than others(P<0.05). However, the rate of land covers was not significant in non-breeding site (P>0.05). The difference on the climate between breeding and non-breeding was not significant(P>0.05). Moreover, none of climate factors affected to reproduction of T. s. elegans(P>0.05). Our study showed that the land covers surrounding the habitats are more important than climate for reproduction of T. s. elegans in Jeju island. This result indicates investigating the habitat and surrounding is necessary for the control of reproduction and spreading of the introduced species.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.33 no.8
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• pp.564-571
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• 2011

In order to establish fundamental data for stream restoration and environmental flow, we investigated fish fauna, community and physical habitat conditions in the Dal Stream of Han River Basin. Field monitoring including fish sampling was conducted from September 2008 to October 2009. A total number of fish caught in the 5 sites was 2,080 representing 9 families 35 species, and 19 species (54.3%) including Acheilognathus koreensis and Iksookimia koreensis were Korean endemic species during the study period. The most frequently found species in number was pale chub (Zacco platypus, 25.7%, n = 632) followed by Coreoleuciscus splendidus (18.0%, n = 375) and Z. koreanus (13.0%, n = 272). The lower reach of Dal Stream was more abundance of species, high diversity, evenness and richness, and lower dominance index than those of the upper reach. According to the dendrogram established at 0.63 level of similarity rate, sampling stations were divided into 2 groups. Most of upper streams in Korea consist of riffles and runs that are repeatedly followed by another one. However, stream channelization and leveling have caused reduction of habitat diversity. Therefore, it is necessary to make an effort on stream rehabilitation with evaluation of physical habitat condition by indicator species in order to maintain biodiversity and perform ecological restoration.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.191-203
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• 2006

To understand the effect of forest fragmentation on forest-dwelling birds, it is more effective to analyze on the selected specialists than on the whole bird community. We investigated the edge preference of forest-dwelling birds to discriminate habitat specialist species in the interior and on the edge of temperate deciduous forests in central Korea. Point count and line transect census were conducted at Gwangneung forest from February to October. Our result shows that there was no consistent tendency in abundance of birds between in the interior and on the edge because of the different landscape characteristics and the high proportion of habitat generalists. Five habitat specialists in 73 bird species were identified by the differences in both population densities; three forest interior and two forest edge specialists. Asian Stubtail Warblers (Urosphena squameiceps), Pale Thrushes (Turdus pallidus) and Coal Tits (Parus ater) were included in the forest interior group, but Black-billed Magpies (Pica pica) and Black-naped Orioles (Oriolus chinensis) were classified as the forest edge group. We suppose that a selective monitoring on patterns and changes in spatial use of these five habitat specialists is needed to estimate the effects of forest fragmentation in temperate deciduous forests. And, moreover, systematic monitoring methods for field survey should be established based on the point count method and line transect census to ensure the equality of data.