• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.139-146
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• 2010

The survey was done in order to find what kinds of birds visit Taeanhaean National Park during breeding season, where we fixed up 10 coastal areas and islands within the National Park. Three groups concurrently performed the field research from 5th to 9th of July in 2009. Total 58 species and 7,323 individuals were recorded in Taeanhaean National Park. 48 species including 6,187 individuals were observed in coastal areas and 33 species including 1,136 individuals in island areas. The most dominant species in the National Park are Larus crassirostris which accounts for 60% of the birds inhabiting there, and they seem to have been bred in the islands near the National Park. The birds observed only around the coastal areas include Anas poecilorhyncha, Fulica atra, Egretta intermedia and the others which consist of 25 species and amount to 318 individuals, and the birds found exclusively in island areas include Phalacrocorax filamentosus, Apus pacificus¸ Locustella pleskei and other birds, which consist of 10 species and the number of those individuals observed was 308. The inhabited islands areas such as Gauido were characterized by high ratio of waterbird population, which seems to be correlated with the factors such as the extent of island, the richness of water resources, and the diversity of habitats. Based on the data collected during the research and other data from the previous observations, the kinds of dominant species remain nearly unchanged. And in spite of the oil spill accident in 2007, the increase in the number of waterbirds compared to 2004 may be the evidence that the area is recovering from the environmental pollution. At present, the tidal power plants are being built or scheduled to be built and large-scale reclamation is also under way. What is worse, those areas are seeing the increase of pension construction, which is likely to be the potential cause of damage and disturbance against some key habitats for the waterbirds. Therefore, it is a major priority that we build the bird information system to efficiently manage the knowledge-based asset collected from bird-watching groups and to better monitor the areas that need enhanced database through which the National Park can be appropriately administered.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.106-114
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• 2021

This study was conducted to provide basic data for the systematic management and preservation of Nak-nam Jeongmaek. Of the Nak-nam Jeongmaek, six priority research areas, Gilmajae, Mt. Cheonwang, Mt. Yeohang, Mt. Muhak, Mt. Cheonju, Mt. Sineo, with consideration to terrain and environmental characteristics, were selected for this study. Two fixed plots for each bird habitat type were selected for each site and were surveyed from May to October in 2018. The survey conducted in the six priority research areas of Nak-nam Jeongmaek identified 48 species with 1,181 individual birds. The largest number of species and individuals occupying a particular habitat type were found in the developed land with 35 species and 567 individuals. Species diversity was the highest at 2.66 in the forest road. According to the results of nesting guild analysis of Nak-nam Jeongmaek (Pearson Chi-square test, 𝛘²=16.681, p<0.05) by each habitat type, the communities that belong to the canopy nesting guild showed a high frequency in the developed land, the valley, and the forest road. The results of the Pearson Chi-Square test (𝛘²=16.217, p<0.005) showed that the communities that belonged to the bush foraging guild were the most frequent in the developed land, and the communities that belonged to the canopy foraging guild were the most frequent in the valley and the forest road. The results of these studies suggest that the various habitats of the Nak-nam Jeongmaek provide a variety of resources for bird habitats.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.303-320
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• 2019

Plants interact with various biotic and abiotic environmental factors. It requires much information to understand the traits of a plant species. A shortage of information would restrict the assessment, especially in the evaluation of what kind of factors influence a plant species to face extinction. Polygonatum stenophyllum Maxim. is one of the northern plants of which Korea is the southern distribution edge. The Korean Ministry of Environment had designated it to be the endangered species until December 2015. Although it is comparatively widespread, and a large population has recently been reported, it is assessed to be vulnerable due to the low population genetic diversity. This study evaluated the current distribution of Polygonatum stenophyllum Maxim. We investigated the vegetational environment, population structures, phenology, soil environment, and self-incompatibility based on the results. Lastly, we evaluated the current threats observed in the habitats. The habitats tended to be located in the areas where the masses at the edge of the stream accumulated except for those that were located on slopes of some mountainous areas. Most of them showed a stable population structure and had re-established or recruited seedlings. Polygonatum stenophyllum Maxim. had the difference in time when the shoots appeared above the ground depending on the depth of the rhizome located in the underground. In particular, the seedlings and juveniles had their rhizome located shallow in the soil. Visits by pollinator insects and success in pollination were crucial factors for bearing of fruits by Polygonatum stenophyllum Maxim. The threats observed in the habitat of Polygonatum stenophyllum Maxim. included the expansion of cultivated land, construction of new buildings, and construction of river banks and roads. Despite such observed risk factors, it is not likely that there would be rapid population reduction or extinction because of its widespread distribution with the total population of more than 2.7 million individuals and the new populations established by the re-colonization.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.231-243
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• 2022

Anthropogenic disturbances on freshwater ecosystem are known to degrade biodiversity, especially on fish assemblage. In this study, we have conducted fish surveys to identify impact of a bridge construction on fish assemblages. A total of eight study sites were surveyed in the Danjang and the Dong Stream in southern part of South Korea from June to November in 2021. The fish samplings were carried out five times, using cast-nets(10×10 mm mesh size), scoop-nets(4×4 mm, 5×5 mm mesh size), set-nets (10×10 mm mesh size), and fish traps (3×3 mm mesh size), along with the Stream/River Ecosystem Survey and Health Assessment by the Ministry of Environment of Korea and basic water quality measurement. Also, we applied the species diversity index and length-weight relationship regressions on certain species to identify interspecific growth rate differences in accordance with study sites. As a result, a total of 782 individuals, 23 species and 10 families were collected. The dominant species was Zacco Koreanus and relative abundance was 50.89%. When applying the length-weight relationship regressions on certain species, the 'b' value for Z. Koreanus was lower at the downstream points than at the upstream points of the construction site. In addition, when comparing to the results of the past survey, relative density of demersal fish at the upstream and downstream points decreased from 26% to 1.4%, and from 18% to 6.3%, respectively. In conclusion, it is considered that bridge construction negatively affects the habitat of fishes, especially on demersal fishes. Therefore, appropriate conservation efforts such as installation of silt protector and sand sedimentation pond are needed to alleviate the disturbance in habitat such as occurrence of turbidity and destruction of micro-habitats.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.55-66
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• 2024

This study conducted a survey to investigate the characteristics of fish communities and the inhabiting status of endangered species in the Byekgye Stream, Korea from April to September 2020. A total of 3,415 fish of 9 families and 31 species were collected from 7 survey stations during the survey period. The dominant species was Zacco koreanus (relative abundance of 31.2%), and the subdominant species was Z. platypus (15.0%), followed by Pungtungia herzi (11.7%), Acheilognathus yamatsutae (5.4%), A. lanceolata intermedia (4.8%), Rhinogobius brunneus (4.4%), and Pseudopungtungia tenuicorpa (4.3%). Among the fish species collected, 19 (61.3%) were identified as Korean endemic species, and two cold-water fish species sensitive to climate change (Rhynchocypris kumgangensis and Cottus koreanus) were collected. Four species were designated as class II endangered wildlife by the Ministry of Environment: A. signifer, P. tenuicorpa, Rhodeus pseudosericeus, and C. koreanus. A. signifer and P. tenuicorpa mainly inhabited the mid to lower streams, R. pseudosericeus in the midstream, and R. pseudosericeus in the upstream. P. tenuicorpa inhabited in large numbers, and estimating the age by total length-frequency distribution in July, the total length of the 26-35 mm group was estimated as 0 years old, the 54-75 mm group as 1 year old, 82-97 mm group as 2 years old, 104-109 mm group as 3 years or older. The cluster analysis showed that the dominance index decreased from upstream to downstream, but the diversity, evenness, and richness index increased. The water quality of Byekgye Stream was evaluated as good overall since the river health (fish assessment index, FAI) using fish was evaluated as excellent (5 stations) and good (2 stations). Byekgye Stream has relatively well-preserved habitats, but conservation measures are required as habitats are disturbed by river repair work in some parts of the midstream and downstream areas where many endangered species inhabit.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.271-279
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• 2013

The species of Corydalis cornupetala Y.H.Kim et J.H.Jeong Which is belong to the Corydaliaceae is only distributed at the Gyaejeong Forest in Gyeongsan. As one of the spring ephemeral plants, this species has limited growing period. The present study is on site characteristics and vegetation structure in the wild habitats of Corydalis cornupetala Y.H.Kim et J.H.Jeong and offers basic information on habitat conservation including recovery plan. The soil texture is silty loam and soil acidity is ranged as pH 5.4~5.9. The electric conductivity was 0.22-0.50 ds/m and soil organic content is ranged as 7.61~15.78 %. Fifty nine vascular plants were identified from 5 quadrats. According to the two way cluster analysis applied by the PC-ORD, the community was classified as Acer ginnala, Vicia amoena and Stellaria aquatica. The habitat of Corydalis cornupetala Y.H.Kim et J.H.Jeong was determined by the dissimilarity indices rather than the species number of appearance. Species diversity was 1.26, and dominance and evenness were found to be 0.08 and 0.92, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.379-387
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• 1999

During the past several decades, electricity generating plant increased with remarkable rapidity in Korea. Recently the increase has been much more rapid as the rate of industrialization has accelerated. Construction of nuclear power plants in coastal areas inevitably caused the perturbation of critical coastal habitats and thus influenced marine algal species composition. Particularly, an increase in the building of nuclear power plants led the amounts of heat discharged to increase exponentially. As far as the effects of cooling water and thermal discharges are concerned, benthic marine algae are likely to be vulnerable to a discharge. Heated effluents from nuclear power plants, with the temperature rises of 7~12$^{\circ}C$ under normal operating and design conditions, are discharged through the discharge canal and into natural water bodies. It is clear that the characteristic marine algal community is developed in the area affected by the thermal discharges; i.e. low species richness and low species diversity. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to note that elevated temperatures exert differential effects depending on the algal populations. Benthic marine algae grown at the discharge canal can be regarded as warm tolerant species. 35 species (4 blue-green, 9 green, 8 brown and 14 red algae) of marine algae occurred more than 20eye frequency at discharge canal of three nuclear power plants in the east coast during 1992 ~ 1998 and thus can be categorized as warm tolerant species in Korea. To minimize the ecological impacts of waste heat on benthic marine algae, it is recommended that, in the future, nuclear power plants will have to employ some form of closed-cycle cooling for the condensers.

• Proceedings of the Korea Society of Environmental Biology Conference
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• 2003.06a
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• pp.1-5
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• 2003

In order to prepare a basis for ecological restoration of the Seoul Metropolitan area, ecological diagnoses on soil physico-chemical properties and vegetation structure were carried out. Land use patterns, actual vegetation, and biotope patterns were also investigated based on aerial photograph interpretation and field checks. I formulated landscape elements overlaying those data and evaluated the ecological value of each element. Soil pollution was evaluated by analyzing soil samples collected in each grid on the mesh map, divided by 2km $\times$ 2km intervals. Soil samples were collected in forests or grasslands escaped from direct human interference. Soil pollution evaluated from pH, and SO$_4$, Ca, Mg, and Al contents of soil was more severe in the urban outskirts than in the urban center. Those soil environmental factors showed significant correlation with each other. Vegetation in the urban area was different in species composition from that in suburban areas and showed lower diversity compared with that in the suburban areas. Successional process investigated by population structure of major species also showed a difference. That is, successional trend was normal in suburban areas, but that in urban areas showed a retrogressive pattern. The landscape ecological map of Seoul indicates that the urban center lacks vegetation and greenery space is restricted in urban outskirts. Such an uneven distribution of vegetation has caused a specific urban climate and thereby contributed to aggravation of air and soil pollution, furthermore causing vegetation decline. From this result, it was estimated that such uneven distribution of vegetation functioned as a trigger factor to deteriorate the urban environment. I suggested, therefore, a restoration plan based on landscape ecological principles, which emphasizes connectivity and even distribution of green areas throughout the whole area of the Seoul to solve this complex environmental problem. In this restoration plan, first of all, I decided the priority order for connection of the fragmented greenery spaces based on the distances from the core reserves comprised of green belt and rivers, which play roles as habitats of wildlife as well as for improvement of urban environment. Next, I prepared methods to restore each landscape element included in the paths of green network to be constructed in the future on the bases of such preferential order. Rivers and roads, which hold good connectivity, were chosen as elements to play important roles in constructing green network by linking the fragmented greenery spaces.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.423-432
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• 2004

In coastal area of Inchon, dredging and the disposal of dredged material for sea-wall construction and reclamation have increased in recent years. These activities may impact the benthic environment and result in changes in benthic communities, but little information is available on the extent and direction of these changes. We investigated whether there have been changes in the dominant macrobenthic species and benthic community over the last decade, and explored the relationship between environmental variables and spatial patterns of macrobenthic community structure. We sampled macrobenthos and recorded environmental variables in the coastal habitats of Inchon in March and June 2004. In total, 212 macrobenthic species were recorded during this study, predominately crustaceans $(34{\%})$, mollusks $(32{\%})$ and polychaetes $(21{\%})$. The mean density of macrobenthos was $1,393\;ind./m^{2}$.The most abundant species was Amphioplus japonicus $(20.5{\%})$, followed by Heteromastus filiformis $(14.4{\%})$, Theora fragilis $(8.2{\%})$ and Ampharete sp. $(4.0{\%})$. Over the past decade the dominant macrobenthic species in this area shifted. Multivariate analysis (multidimensional scaling) revealed significant differences in community structure among three regions: the middle part of the sampling area (B), site 8 (C) and other sites (A). Mean density varied significantly among the three regions, but no differences in the number of species and diversity (H') were observed. The distribution of the macrobenthic community was affected by environmental variables such as percentage sand content and sediment kurtosis. Species that were important in different areas included A. japonicus in region A, Raeta puchella in region B and T. fragilis in region C. The important species in regions B and C were filter-feeding bivalves, and the abundance of these species may be related to the increase in percentage sand content. We suggest that the sediment composition (percentage sand content) may be an important factor in determining the dominant species and structure of the macrobenthic communities in coastal Inchon. Long-term monitoring programs are necessary to understand ongoing changes in the benthic communities of this area.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.229-248
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• 2019

This study was carried out to investigate the flora of Mt. Jaamsan on the Gyeongsang supergroup, Korea. From the results of eight field surveys from March to October 2017, we have identified 530 total taxa, representing 483 species, eight subspecies, 35 varieties, two forms, and two hybrids, which were placed in 325 genera and 110 families. The plant formation of Mt. Jaamsan is the deciduous broad-leaved and conifer mixed forests, which are the common ones in the middle part of the Korean Peninsula. Most of the mountain is covered with young secondary forest, which is mainly composed of Quercus spp., and Pinus. Out of these 530 taxa, 12 are endemic to Korea, 17 taxa are listed on the Korean Red List of threatened species, 65 are floristic target species, and 55 are invasive alien species. The percentage of naturalized index(NI) and urbanization index (UI) were 10.4% and 17.2%, respectively. Mt. Jaamsan has a high plant diversity, including endemic and rare species, which consist of geomorphological landscapes. We considered that the composition and distribution of species are affected by the different environmental factors according to the sedimentary rocks, drying ridges, valleys, and streams. Together with the rocks and soils were the substrate type that play a major role in providing the unique habitats for sun plants in the area.