• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.175-185
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• 2012

To clarify reproductive ecology of the melania snail Semisulcospira coreana (v. Martens, 1886) in Bukhan River, gonad development, fatness, gonad index, sex ratio, first sexual maturity of population, monthly change of larvae number and developmental stages in brood pouches were investigated by six identification methods. As maturation progrsses, the sex of the snali can be distinguishable easily by color:: the ovary being blue-green and testis light yellow. The sex ratio of female to male individuals over 13.95 mm shell height was significantly different from 1:1 (${\chi}^2$ = 38.45, p < 0.05). The sex ratio of female to male individuals changed drastically according to the season, Based on the monthly variations of fatness, gonad index and histological analysis, spawning occurred twice a year (spring and autumn) and the mean size of matured eggs was $450{\mu}m$ in diameter. The monthly change of larval number in brood pouch showed also two distinct peaks in March and September during the year. The average number of larvae in brood pouches was 286 - 862 individuals. In this study, the number of larvae in the brood pouches were a minimum in December and a maximum in March (975 larvae). The biological minimum size (the size at 50% of group sexual maturity) of the melania snail was 13.95 mm in shell height in females and males. All females over 15 mm in shell height possesed brood pouches.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.131-136
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• 2001

Relative growth and composition of larval development stages in brood pouch of the melania snail, Semisulcospira libertina libertina were investigated based on monthly field samples for a year. Total number of specimens examined was 1,200. Size values (mean$\pm$S. D.) of shell height (SH), shell diameter (SD), total weight (TW), meat weight (MW) and shell weight (SW) were $15.96\pm3.41\;mm$, $7.82\pm1.38\;mm$, $0.55\pm0.31\;g$, $0.24\pm0.15\;g$ and $0.39\pm0.23\;g$, respectively, Water temperature (WT) of the sampling site varied from $1.3^{\circ}C\;to\;22.5^{\circ}C$. Relative growth equations among SH, SD, TW, MW and SW of S. libertina libertina specimens pooled were as follows: SD=0,3583SH+2.1648 $(R^2=0.8391)$, $TW=0.0005SH^{2.4853}\;(R^2=0.8391)$,$MW:\;0.0005SH^{2.849}\;(R^2= 0.8391)$ and $SW=0.0004SH^{2.3798}\;(R^2=0.7057)$. Female S. libertina libertina had larvae in its brood pouch throughout the year, Average number of larvae in the brood pouch varied from $91\pm33(July)$ to $396\pm174\;(November)$, decreasing in spring and increasing in autumn. In the monthly composition of larval stage in the brood pouch, trochophore, pre-veliger, veliger and juvenile showed maximum as $66.7\%$ in May, $70.7\%$ in November, $60.9\%$ in February and $13.9\%$ in January, respectively. Percent composition of the juveniles decreased in spring and autumn. In conclusion, S. libertina libertina is likely to have two main parturition periods, March to May and September and October.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.83-89
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• 2020

This study provides a detailed morphological description of larvae obtained from Urocampus nanus and Syngnathus schlegeli male brood fish over 20 days of culture in the laboratory. In both species, mating takes place when several males each spread their brood pouch like a wing to attract a female's attention. When the female begins to swim upward, the males follow her and receive her eggs in their brood pouches. Newborn larvae of U. nanus and S. schlegeli had already completed formation of dorsal and caudal fin rays, but not of pectoral fin rays. Pectoral fin rays were completely formed 15 days after release in S. schlegeli and 20 days after release in U. nanus. The ratio of caudal fin length to standard length increased until 8 days and decreased thereafter in S. schlegeli, while in U. nanus this ratio declined continuously after hatching. The larvae of the two species were very similar in external morphology, but well distinguished by the number of dorsal fin rays (15-16 in U. nanus vs. 39-43 in S. schlegeli), the presence of a membrane under the tail (absent in U. nanus vs. present in S. schlegeli), and the presence of melanophores in the dorsal fin (present in U. nanus vs. absent in S. schlegeli). Based on this study, U. nanus appears to be evolutionally more similar to pipefish than to seahorse.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.21 no.sup1
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• pp.75-75
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• 2009

The previous morphology-based taxonomic frameworks within the family Sygnathidae had emphasized the significance of the male brood pouch and reproductive biology in defining the group. However, several different hypotheses had been proposed by different investigators. This study have beencarried out to determine the phylogenetic relationships among 19 species belonging to the order Syngnathiformes with three Gasterosteiformes species as outgroup taxa by using the mitochondrial cytochrome b and Rag2 nuclear DNA sequences. Phylogenetic analyses based on neighbor-joining distance, maximum parsimony, minimum evolution and maximum likelihood method strongly supported that the family Syngnathidae, the suborder Syngnathoidei and the order Syngnathiformes were all monophyletic group. Much of previous morphological analyses were supported by our molecular data, but some deep relationships were not clearly resolved with regard to members of the suborder Aulostomoidei.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.26-29
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• 1986

Corbicula fluminea, one of the 2 species in the family Corbiculidae living in the Lake Uiam, was used as an experimental material and the embryonic development and the structure of glochidia of this species were investigated. This freshwater mussels was oviparous, but some ovoviviparous: incubated their youngs in the inner-demibranchs or outer-demibranchs, however, chiefly used the inner-demibranchs as brood-pouch. The average time required from a fertilized egg to two-cell stage, veliger stage, and glochidium was 76 minutes, 3 hours, and 17 hours, respectively, The mean size of glochidium was $168{\mu}m$ in shell height, $195{\mu}m$ in shell lengh, $114{\mu}m$ in hinge legth and the form of glochidium was D-type and had no hooks or hooklets for attaching to fish like Unioidae.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.360-364
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• 2007

A single female specimen (73.6 mm SL) of ghost pipefish, Solenostomus cyanopterus Bleeker, belonging to the family Solenostomidae (new Korean name: Yu-ryeong-sil-go-gi-gwa), was observed and collected in the water off Yeongdeck, East Sea of Korea. Unlike to syngnathids, solenostomids are characterized by having the brood pouch formed by pelvic fins in female and dorsal fin spines present. This species is characterized by having the deep snout, and short, deep caudal peduncle, but no cirri and striped markings. In the water, the species swims slowly head downward in pairs and looks like a drifting pieces of algae or fallen leaf. We describe this species as new to Korean fish fauna and propose its new Korean name, "Yu-ryeong-sil-go-gi".

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.405-413
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• 2004

The previous morphology-based taxonomic frameworks within the family Syngnathidae had emphasized the significance of the male brood pouch and reproductive biology in defining the group. However, several different hypotheses had been proposed by different investigators. This study has been carried out to determine the phylogenetic relationships among 19 species belonging to the order Syngnathiformes with three Gasterosteiformes species as outgroup taxa by using the mitochondrial cytochrome b DNA sequences. Phylogenetic analyses based on neighbor-joining distance, maximum parsimony, minimum evolution and maximum likelihood method strongly supported that the family Syngnathidae, the suborder Syngnathoidei and the order Syngnathiformes were all monophyletic group. Although much of previous morphological analyses were supported by our molecular data, there were some significant discrepancies between molecular and morphological work. Such an interesting result was that the weedy seadragon (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) strongly grouped together with the New Zealand pot-belly seahorse (Hippocampus abdominalis). Considering the markedly different brooding structure between them, this unexpected result might be explained whether by multiple independent origins of brooding structure or by hybridization between the female Hippocampus and other syngnathid species having individual membranous egg compartment. In addition, the suborder Aulostomoidei was paraphyletic group because the shrimpfish (Aeliscus strigatus), belonging to the family Centriscidae, always grouped together with the family Syngnathidae as a sister taxon.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.107-116
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• 2014

Gonadal development and maturation mechanism were studied on the freshwater marsh clam Corbicula papyracea (Heude), which is the endangered species in Korea. The specimens were collected in the rearing ponds and waterway of NFRDI in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do from January to December 2004, and then investigated by condition factor, relative growth, gonadal development phases and gonad histological characters based on 30-50 individuals every month. Comparing with the freshwater marsh clam, C. papyracea is small, light olive brown shell and violet interior. The hermaphrodite individuals of C. papyracea take an internal fertilization and fertilized eggs are stored in the foster-sack in the gills, then the hatched juveniles are released outside after an ovoviviparous process. The average water temperature of inhabit area was in range of $1.8-27.0^{\circ}C$ and usually took great effects on the gonad maturation of C. papyracea. The condition factor ranged from 0.14 to 0.21 throughout the year, which was the lowest during winter season (December-February), and gradually increased to the highest value of 0.21 in May. The ratio of meat weight to total weight was 25.9-38.7%, indicating the similar trend with condition factor. The highest values of condition factor and the ratio of meat weight appeared 1-2 months later than gonadosomatic index reached the peak value, it was probably because that the ovoviviparous eggs would spend a long period before hatching from the foster-sack in the gills. To synthesize the characters of meat weight, condition factor and gonad development by histological study, reproductive cycle of C. papyracea could be divided into five successive stages: multiplicative stage (December to February), growing stage (February to May), mature stage (June to August), spawning stage (August to November), recovery stage (November to December). The smallest shell length of matured C. papyracea was 12.6 mm, and individuals, larger than 16 mm, was formed the nursery in the gills.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.615-626
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• 2022

This study investigated the habitat characteristics and spawning ecology of Hippocampus haema (Syngnathidae) in Soando Island, Korea, from May 2015 to December 2016. The survey site where seahorses inhabit was mainly formed by seagrass of Zostera marina populations. Total density and biomass (Mean±SE) of Z. marina were the highest at 136±14.4 shoots/m² and 489.8g DW/m², respectively, in spring (May), while the total density was lowest at 93±7.0shoots/m²in autumn (October), and biomass was the lowest and at 122.3g DW/m² in winter (February). During the study period, 293 individuals were identified through a diving and kick net survey, and the total length of H. haema ranged from 10.1 to 87.0mm. Male individuals nurturing fertilized eggs or larvae appeared beginning in May and were collected until October in both 2015 and 2016. Juvenile individuals were captured beginning in July 2015 and June 2016. As a result of a comprehensive analysis of the spawning season characteristics, it was estimated that the spawning season of H. haema was from April to October. The number of fertilized egg or larvae inside the male brood pouch were 38.3±14.8 (20-76), and the number of fecundity identified from female were 47.2±8.6 (31-59). The male-to-female ratio of H. haema was 1:1.7, indicating the dominance of males.