• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.45-67
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• 2008

Ocean climate variables ($1900{\sim}2005$), time series of catches ($1910{\sim}2005$) and body size data were used to assess the year-to-year and decadal scale fluctuations in abundance of the fish populations (Japanese sardine, anchovy, jack mackerel, chub mackerel, Pacific saury and common squid) that have spawning grounds in the East China Sea and its adjacent regions. A negative correlation between the abundance of pelagic fishes (e.g. jack mackerel) in the Tsushima Warm Current (TWC) region and the Kuroshio-Oyashio Current (KOC) region was attributed to the climatic modulation of larval transport and recruitment, which depends on the winter monsoon-induced drift, current systems, and spawning season and site. The changes in abundance and alternation of dominant fish populations in the two regions in the 1930s, 1970s, and late 1980s mirrored changes in the climate indices (ALPI, AOI and MOI). Oscillations in the decadal climate shifts between the two regions led to zonal differences in larval transport and recruitment, and hence differences in the abundance of the pelagic fish populations. During deep Aleutian Lows, as in the 1980s, larval transport from the East China Sea to the KOC region increases in association with the strong winter Asian monsoon, cool regime and increased volume transport of the Kuroshio Current systems, whereas during a weak Aleutian Low (as in the 1990s), larval transport to the TWC region increased in association with a weak winter Asian monsoon, a warm regime, and increased volume transport of the Tsushima current system. We postulate that the increased chub mackerel abundance in the TWC region and the decreased abundance in the KOC region in the 1990s are partly attributed to changes in recruitment and availability to the fishing fleets under the warm regime in the spawning and nursery grounds in the East China Sea in association with the quasi-steady state of mild winter monsoon in the 1990s. The fluctuations in chub mackerel and jack mackerel abundance are under the environment-dependant growth form, although the tropicalization was identified in the TWC region. The density-dependant growth form was found in Japanese sardine populations, but no tropicalization by fishing was identified in the long ($10{\sim}15$ year) periods of abundance despite their short ($3{\sim}4$ year) generation time, suggesting that the environment-dependant growth form drove the changes in abundance. Year-to-year and decadal scale variations in abundance and population structure of the Pacific saury responded to climate regime shifts (1976/1977, 1988/1989), suggesting that the fish is a key bio-indicators for changes in the ecosystem.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.422-431
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• 2017

The biogeochemical information of riverine organic matter gives a detailed and integrated recording of natural and anthropogenic activity within a watershed. To investigate the changes in quality and quantity of organic carbon transporting from mountain to ocean via river channels, we estimated the concentrations of dissolved (DOC) and particulate organic carbon (POC), and then traced the source origin of POC using stable carbon isotopes ratio before and after summer rainfalls in the Tamjin River and Ganjin Bay, Korea. Along the small watershed, a total of 13 sites including headwaters, dam reservoir, river and estuary were established for the study. We found some interesting findings in the aspect of distribution of DOC/POC concentration changing their origin sources dynamically flowing downstream. In particular, the river channel transport downstream mainly DOC to river mouth, although upper dam reservoir increased POC concentration by phytoplankton production in summer. Whereas, in the river mouth and estuary, POC was dominated not only by local supply from nearby reed saltmarsh, but also by marine phytoplankton production, respectively. The findings can contribute to increasing the understanding of riverine organic carbon transport in upper large dam and lower open estuary system.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.61-70
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• 2007

This study was conducted to investigate nutrient dynamics and water quantity of throughfall and stemflow in natural oak stands in Korea. The ratio of the total throughfnll and stemflow to the amount of precipitation varied with locations. It was considered that the ratio was affected not only by the characteristics of tree species but also by regional, weather and other environmental conditions. It was, therefore, necessary to set up a water control system to launch a tending project for natural oak stands. Comparisons of nutrient amount in throughfall among regions reflected regional characteristics. $Ca^{2+},\;Mg^{2+}$ and $K^+$ ions were leached from the canopy and yellow sand accumulation. $Na^+$ and $Cl^-$ were marine-borne. $NO_3^-$ and $SO_4^{2-}$ resulted from dry deposition of air pollutants. Nutrient amount in the stemflow was as low as about 10% of that in the total throughfall and stemflow. The pH of stemflow in natural oak stands in urban areas ranged from 3 to 5. Influx of the acidic stemflow to soil could, in the long term, affect pH in soil solution and nutrient dynamics around root zones.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.80-92
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• 2015

Some of alien plants, which were introduced from foreign countries, have caused problems in Korea. Invasion of these alien plants in the ecosystem threatens the habitat of endemic species, reducing biodiversity, and causing a disturbance in the ecological system. In urbanized areas of campus universities, a diverse range of organisms were found and a comparison between the sites, near roads or housing sites were made because the campuses provided a large biotope. Although the campus had been exposed to interferences like gardening, it was also a place for most organisms to live in an active floating population due to free access. This research investigated the flora of alien plants that appeared in Beakseok University, Sangmyung University, Hoseo University and Dankook University, and relationship between the distribution of alien plants and the campus and green areas and distance from the highway. The total number of plant species and naturalized species found in the four universities was 189 and 43 species. Those of Dankook University were 136 and 35 species, Hoseo 108 and 25 species, Sangmyung 103 and 31 species, and Baekseok 97 and 26 species, respectively. The abundance of natural plants for each respective university tended to be higher as it became closer to the highway. Also, the closer the walking distance to the university, the greater the tendency for the degree of similarity to be higher. As a result, we may conclude that the distribution of alien plants and anthropogenic activities may be closely related.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.267-276
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• 2019

The Gonggeomji Reservoir is a historical irrigation facility built in the 8th century and designated as a wetland protected area by Ministry of Environment, Korea. In order to collect the baseline data necessary for developing a sustainable conservation strategy, we investigated the classification of actual vegetation, the vegetation distribution and the floristic structure of the vegetation in the Gonggeomji Wetland Protection Area. In the whole protection area, a total of 26 plant communities were classified including the wetland, riparian, grassland, forest, farmland, and orchard vegetation. According to the results of detrended correspondence analysis, the structure of wetland vegetation was mainly affected by water depth and human disturbance. In reservoir wetlands, floating vegetation such as Utricularia vulgaris var. japonica, Trapa japonica, and emergent vegetation such as Nelumbo nucifera, Typha spp. completely covered the water surface. Since 2014, the reservoir wetland has been terrestrialized with the expansion of emergent and hygrophytic plants. For the sustainable conservation and restoration of wetland protected areas, it is necessary to naturalize the topography and wetland vegetation, recovery the hydrologic system, and restore ecosystem connectivity from wetlands to forests.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.101-109
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• 2003

The study area, Kwangneung Experiment Forest (KEF) is located on the west-central portion of Korean peninsula and belongs to a cool-temperate broadleaved forest Bone. At the old-growth deciduous forest near Soribong-peak (533.1 m) in KEF, we have established a 1 ha permanent plot ($100m{\times}100m$) and a flux tower, and the site was registered as a KLTER(Korean long-term ecological research network) and DK site of KoFlux. In this site, we made a stemmap of trees and analyzed forest stand structure and physical and chemical soil characteristics, and estimated carbon budgets by forest components (tree biomass, soils, litter and so on). Dominant tree species were Quercus serrata and Carpinus laxiflora, and accompanied by Q. aliena, Carpinus cordata, and so on. As a result of a field survey of the plot, density of the trees larger than 2 cm in DBH was 1,473 trees per ha, total biomass 261.2 tons/ha, and basal area $28.0m^2$/ha. Parent rock type is granite gneiss. Soil type is brown forest soil (alfisols in USDA system), and the depth is from 38 to 66 cm. Soil texture is loam or sandy loam, and its pH was f개m 4.2 to 5.0 in the surface layer, and from 4.8 to 5.2 in the subsurface layer. Seasonal changes in LAI were measured by hemispherical photography at the 1.2 m height, and the maximum was 3.65. And the spatial distributions of volumetric soil moisture contents and LAIs of the plot were measured. The carbon pool in living tree biomass including below ground biomass was 136 tons C/ha, and 5.6 tons C/ha is stored in the litter layer, and about 92.0 tons C/ha in the soil to the 30 cm in depth. Totally more than about 233.6 tons C/ha was stored in DK site. These ground survey and monitoring data will give some important parameters and validation data for the forest dynamics models or biogeochemical dynamics models to predict or interpolate spatially the changes in forest ecosystem structure and function.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.176-184
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• 2018

This study was intended to provide basic data for more ecological and systematic preservation and management planning of forest vegetations in the Baekdudaegan sector between Danmoknyeong and Guryongnyeong where biodiversity is considered to be very important. A vegetation survey using the Zurich-Montpellier (Z.-M.) method of phytosociology was carried out in a total 142 sites to examine the environmental characteristics. The survey showed the forest vegetation types of one community group, two communities, four groups, and four subgroups. Quercus mongolica and Acer pseudosieboldianum, which fall under Constancy Class V, were dominant species and deemed to be the key species of the forest ecosystem management plan for the investigated areas. Regarding species diversity, it was found that the dominant species of the VT3 type were evenly distributed in the area while the species of the VT4 type showed not only a diverse composition but also the most abundant number of species. Moreover, there were 24 of rare plants found in the Danmoknyeong-Guryongnyeong section: the critically endangered species include Dracocephalum rupestre; the endangered species include Saxifraga octopetala; the vulnerable species include Paeonia japonica, Euphorbia fauriei, Hanabusaya asiatica, and Parasenecio pseudotaimingasa; the least concern species include Aristolochia manshuriensis, Rodgersia podophylla, Salvia chanryoenica, Scopolia japonica, and Parasenecio firmus.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.47 no.spc
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• pp.57-65
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• 2014

Spatial and temporal distributions of zooplankton were measured in an oligotrophic pumped storage-type hydroelectric reservoir which was composed of two reservoirs exchanging water daily, with water going up at night and going down during the day. Repetitive diel disturbance of the water column can be a unique feature of this reservoir system. Chl-${\alpha}$ concentration was highest in the early winter season. Phytoplankton density was lower in summer monsoon due to high flushing rate on rainy days. The zooplankton density was higher in the smaller upper reservoir possibly due to lower fish density in the upper reservoir. In the seasonal variation a time gap was observed between the phytoplankton bloom and the zooplankton bloom (particularly a rotifer, Keratella cochlearis). It is likely to that Keratella production is partially supported by heterotrophic food sources than phytoplankton. The dominance of a mixotrophic dinoflagellate (Peridinium bipes f. ocultatum) might have complicated the trophic relationship between phytoplankton and zooplankton. Our results provide some ecological information of zooplankton community in a highly disturbed alpine reservoir ecosystem relying on mostly allochthonous organic matter.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.320-333
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• 2016

This study was carried out to elucidate the development of unprecedented water-bloom caused by a single species of colonial green algae Eudorina elegans in the upstream area of the Seungchon weir located in the Yeongsan River from late April to May 2013. The Yeongsan River is typically regulated system and the waterbody is seriously enriched by both external and internal sources of nutrients. Seasonal algal outbreaks were highly probable due to various potential factors, such as the excessive nutrients contained in treated wastewater, slow current, high irradiation and temperature, in diatom (winter), green algae (spring) and bluegreen algae (summer). Spring green-tide was attributed to E. elegans with level up to $1,000mg\;m^{-3}$(>$50{\times}10^4cells\;mL^{-1}$). The bloom was exploded in the initial period of the algal development and after then gradually diminished with transporting to the downstream by the intermittent rainfall, resulting in rapid expansion of the distribution range. Although the pulsed-flows by the weir manipulation was applied to control algal bloom, they were not the countermeasures to solve the underlying problem, but rather there still was a remaining problem related to the impact of pulsed-flows on the downstream. The green-tide of E. elegans in this particular region of the Yeongsan River revealed the blooming characteristics of a colonial motile microalga, and fate of vanishing away by the succeeding episodic events of mesoscale rainfall. We believe that the results of the present study contribute to limno-ecological understanding of the green-tide caused by blue-green algae in the four major rivers, Korea.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.52 no.spc2
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• pp.865-873
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to develop and apply a river space restoration framework considering various functions of river basin system. In particular, we will present sustainable river basin management directions by quantifying the effect of improving the aquatic ecosystem through the restoration of river space. For this purpose, the present problems are derived from functional aspects of the river basin, and the river area restoration framework linked with the individual outcome indicators is constructed to evaluate the restoration effect by each function. The ecological impact of restoration of river area was quantitatively analyzed by introducing ecotope concept. As a result of the comparison of restoration effects by creating three kinds of river area restoration scenarios, the construction of suitable habitat such as backswamp in the expanded area has shown favorable results in expanding biodiversity. The diversity evaluation of ecotope in conjunction with the hydraulic and hydrological characteristics of the year will not only provide the expected effects of restoration of river space but will also serve as a criterion about post-project monitoring for outcome evaluation.