• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.157-169
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• 2020

The purpose of this study is to investigate the ecological characteristics and vegetation structures of Eurya japonica in Busan. As a result of the TWINSPAN and DCA analysis, 89 plots of 100㎡ each were divided into 3 communities: Quercus serrata-Pinus densiflora-E. japonica community, Pinus thunbergii-E. japonica community, and P. thunbergii-Camellia japonica community. Community I consisted of the Quercus serrata-Pinus densiflora-E. japonica which was mainly located in the high altitude inland. While Q. serrata and P. densiflora competed in the tree layer, the dominant species of the understory layer was E. japonica. Since Carpinus tschonoskii, one of the climax species, was distributed evenly from shrub to tree layers, it was likely that deciduous oak trees or Carpinus tschonoskii would become dominant species in community I. In community I, E. japonica was found in higher altitude than the other evergreen broad-leaved tree and was expected to maintain their tree vigor even if the vegetation structure is converted into the deciduous forest. Community II, the P. thunbergii-E. japonica community, was predicted to maintain its tree vigor unless there were unexpected disturbance factors. Community III, consisting of P. thunbergii-C. japonica and located in Dongbaek Island, was under artificial management. In community III, P. thunbergii was the only species in the tree layer, while C. japonica was predominant in the understory layer. E. japonica and various evergreen broad-leaved tree species were present in the understory layer and shrub layer, which were unmanaged areas. Therefore, it is expected that unless C. japonica is continuously managed, E. japonica is likely to become the dominant species. There were also various evergreen broad-leaved species, such as Machilus thunbergii and Pittosporum tobira, present in the shrub layer. If the temperature continues to rise, the habitat is expected to become evergreen broad-leaved forests in the future as P. thunbergii community declines. The result of Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis of E. japonica and species appearing in 89 plots showed that 9 species were had a statistically significant relationship (p<0.05). Four species, including P. tobira and Q. dentata, had a positive correlation. Five species had a negative correlation, and C. japonica, which had the same ecological position as E. japonica, showed the most negative correlation at -0.384.