• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.384-387
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• 2017

A dead male Jeju weasel with clinical signs of severe dehydration and moribund was submitted for the necropsy. Grossly, purple-red ecchymoses were scattered in the surface of the entire lungs. Milky-white mucoid materials occupied in the left bronchial lumens. Histopathologically, an adult worm with thick cuticle layer surrounded by chronic inflammatory cells was embedded in the left caudal lung lobe. Numerous oval or barrel-shaped parasitic eggs with muco-purulent exudates were observed in the dilated bronchus of another section of left caudal lobe. Operculate parasitic eggs showed typical morphologic characteristics such as barrel shape with asymmetry bipolar plugs and thick bi-layered wall. Based on the histopathologic findings and morphological characteristics of parasitic eggs in the pulmonary tissue section, this case was diagnosed as verminous pneumonia associated Eucoleus aerophilus infection in Jeju weasel.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.317-321
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• 2011

Adult gnathostomes were discovered in the stomach of the Jeju weasel, Mustela sibilica quelpartis, road-killed in Jeju-do (Province). Their morphological characters were examined to identify the species. Total 50 gnathostome adults were collected from 6 out of 10 weasels examined. In infected weasels, 4-6 worms were grouped and embedded in each granulomatous gastric tumor, except 1 weasel. Male worms were $25.0{\times}1.4$ mm in average size, and had a tail with pedunculate papillae, a spicule, and minute tegumental spines. Females were $40.0{\times}2.5$mm in average size, and had a tail without tegumental spines. Pointed and posteriorly curved hooklets were arranged in 8-10 rows on the head bulb. Tegumental spines were distributed from behind the head bulb to the middle portion of the body. The spines were different in size and shape by the distribution level of the body surface. Fertilized eggs were $65.5{\times}38.9\;{\mu}m$ in average size, and had a mucoid plug at 1 pole. These gnathostomes from Jeju weasels were identified as Gnathostoma nipponicum Yamaguti, 1941. By the present study, it was confirmed for the first time that G. nipponicum is distributed in Jeju-do, the Republic of Korea, and the Jeju weasel, M. sibilica quelpartis, plays a crucial role for its definitive host.

• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.205-211
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• 2021

This study investigates the morphological and skull characteristics of the Siberian weasel Mustela sibirica quelpartis from the Jeju Island, South Korea. A total of 26 roadkill specimens (22 males and 4 females) were collected from October 2012 to April 2016. All collected specimens were examined for morphological characteristics, but only 19 specimens (16 males and 3 females) were in a good enough condition to process for skull measurements. This study showed no significant differences in ear length between male and female (p>0.05), and significant differences were found in head-body length, tail length (TL), and hind-food length (p<0.05). Both the male and female of M. s. quelpartis were larger in its external characteristics except for TL than M. s. coreanus living in the mainland of South Korea. M. s. quelpartis males have a smaller skull size than their female counterparts. In general, both male and female M. s. quelpartis showed external characteristics in line with the Island Rule. The findings of this study are important in order to shed more light on the evolutionary mechanism of small mammals living on the Jeju Island.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.88-96
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• 2021

Background: Sika deer, Cervus nippon, were originally introduced to South Korea from Japan and Taiwan for commercial farming purposes. Unfortunately, they were released into the wild during religious events and have since begun to impact the native ecosystem and species endemic to South Korea. The study of activity patterns can improve our understanding of the environmental impact of non-native species and their association with sympatric species. Using camera traps, we studied the diel and seasonal activity patterns of non-native sika deer and quantified the temporal overlap with sympatric mammalian species in the Muljangori-oreum wetlands of Hallasan National Park, South Korea. Results: A total of 970 trap events were recorded for five mammalian species from nine locations during the camera-trap survey. Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus tianschanicus) had the highest number of recorded events (72.0%), followed by sika deer (Cervus nippon) (16.2%), wild boar (Sus scrofa) (5.0%), Asian badger (Meles leucurus) (4.5%), and the Jeju weasel (Mustela sibirica quelpartis) (2.0%). Sika deer had bimodal activity patterns throughout the year, with peaks throughout the spring-autumn twilight, and day and night time throughout the winter. Relating the daily activity of sika deer with other mammalian species, roe deer expressed the highest degree of overlap (Δ₄ = 0.80) while the Asian badger demonstrated the lowest overlap (Δ₄ = 0.37). Conclusions: Our data show that sika deer are a crepuscular species with seasonal variations in daily activity patterns. Additionally, we identified the temporal differences in activity peaks between different mammals in the Muljangori-oreum wetlands and found higher degree of overlap between sika deer and roe deer during twilight hours.

• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.133-136
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• 2012

The objective of this study was to determine the degree of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) divergence between two subspecies of $Mustela$ $sibirica$ from Korea ($M.$ $s.$ $coreanus$ on the Korean Peninsula and ($M.$ $s.$ $quelpartis$ on Jeju Island) and to examine the taxonomic status of ($M.$ $s.$ $quelpartis$. Thus, we obtained complete sequences of mtDNA cytochrome $b$ gene (1,140 bp) from the two subspecies, and these sequences were compared to a corresponding haplotype of ($M.$ $s.$ $coreanus$, downloaded from GenBank. From this analysis, it was observed that the sequences from monogenic ($M.$ $s.$ $quelpartis$ on Jeju Island were identical to the sequences of four ($M.$ $s.$ $coreanus$from four locations across the Korean Peninsula, and that the two subspecies formed a single clade; the average nucleotide distance between the two subspecies was 0.26% (range, 0.00 to 0.53%). We found that the subspecies $quelpartis$ is not genetically distinct from the subspecies $coreanus$, and that this cytochrome $b$ sequencing result does not support the current classification, distinguishing these two subspecies by pelage color. Further systematic analyses using morphometric characters and other DNA markers are necessary to confirm the taxonomic status of ($M.$ $s.$ $quelpartis$.