• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.264-271
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• 2023

Environmental crises caused by climate change and human-induced disturbances have become urgent challenges to the sustainability of human beings. These issues can be addressed based on a data-driven understanding and forecasting of ecosystem responses to environmental changes. In this study, we introduce a long-term ecological monitoring system in Korean Long-Term Ecological Research (KLTER), and a plan for the Korean Ecological Observatory Network (KEON). KLTER has been conducted since 2004 and has yielded valuable scientific results. However, the KLTER approach has limitations in data integration and coordinated observations. To overcome these limitations, we developed a KEON plan focused on multidisciplinary monitoring of the physiochemical, meteorological, and biological components of ecosystems to deepen process-based understanding of ecosystem functions and detect changes. KEON aims to answer nationwide and long-term ecological questions by using a standardized monitoring approach. We are preparing three types of observatories: two supersites depending on the climate-vegetation zones, three local sites depending on the ecosystem types, and two mobile deployment platforms to act on urgent ecological issues. The main observation topics were species diversity, population dynamics, biogeochemistry (carbon, methane, and water cycles), phenology, and remote sensing. We believe that KEON can address environmental challenges and play an important role in ecological observations through partnerships with international observatories.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.105-113
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• 2010

Moths were collected using a 22W UV black light trap in June through September in 2005 and May, June, August and September in 2006. The study sites were Namsan (Mt. Nam), Jirisan (Mt. Jiri), Woraksan (Mt. Worak) which are part of the Korean National Long Term Ecological Research (KNLTER). There were two common forest communities, Quercus mongolica and Pinus densiflora. The purpose of this study was to compare species diversity of the major plant feeding Lepidoptera in the two forest types at the regional KNLTER sites. We collected a total of 435 species from the KLTER sites in 2005 and 2006. Abundance of moths was highest at Woraksan (Mt. Worak) followed by Jirisan (Mt. Jiri). The Namsan (Mt. Nam) site had the lowest, with five families (Arctiidae, Geometridae, Noctuidae, Notodontidae, and Pyralidae). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed statistically significant differences at sampling date in species abundance as a response variable and at site in species richness as another response variable. Although we expected a distinct cluster with the forest type at each study site, one of ordination analyses, nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMS), showed distinct clusters with the moth assemblages at each site only but NMS did not show any distinct cluster with the different forest types at each site as we expected.

• The Korean Journal of Quaternary Research
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.163-163
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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 zone. At the old-growth deciduous forest near Soribong-peak (533.1m) in KEF, we have established a permanent plot and a flux tower, and the site was registered as a KLTER site and also a KoFlux site. In this study, we aimed to present basic ecological characteristics and synthetic data of carbon budgets and flows, and some monitoring data which are essential for providing 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. We made a stemmap of trees in 1 ha plot 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 2cm in DBH was 1,473 trees per ha, total biomass 261.2 tons/ha, and basal area 28.0 m2/ha. Parent rock type is granite gneiss. Soil type is brown forest soil (alfisols in USDA system), and the depth is from 38 to 66cm. Soil texture is loam or sandy loam, and its pH was from 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 l.2m height, and the maximum was 3.65. And the spatial distributions of volumetric soil moisture contents and LAIs of the plot were measured. Litterfall was collected in circular littertraps (collecting area： 0.25m2) and mass loss rates and nutrient release patterns in decomposing litter were estimated using the litterbag technique employing 30cm30cm nylon bags with l.5mm mesh size. Total annual litterfall was 5,627 kg/ha/year and leaf litter accounted for 61% of the litterfall. The leaf litter quantity was highest in Quercus serrata, followed by Carpinus laxiflora and C. cordata, etc. Mass loss from decomposing leaf litter was more rapid in C. laxiflora and C. cordata than in Q. serrata litter. About 77% of C. laxiflora and 84% of C. cordata litter disappeared, while about 48% in Q. serrata litter lost over two years. 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 30cm in depth. Totally more than about 233.6 tons C/ha was stored in DK site. And then we have drawn a schematic diagram of carbon budgets and flows in each compartment of the KEF site.

• 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 Environmental Biology
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.295-301
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• 2013

The diversity and biomass distribution of benthic diatom flora at tidal flats of Hampyeong Bay were studied from 2006 to 2013 as a part of KLTER Program. A total of 83 species (77 strains in 2006, 65 strains in 2007, 41 strains in 2008, 45 strains in 2009, 54 strains in 2010, 55 strains in 2011, 56 strains in 2012 and 40 strains in 2012) were identified as benthic diatoms of Hampyeong Bay tidal flats. The most dominant species were Paralia sulcata and Cyclotella litoralis. Cyclotella sp., Diploneis sp., Entomoneis alata, Gyrosigma sp., Navicula abunda, Navicula gregaria, Navicula spp. and Nitzschia palea were the other common species which contributed to the high benthic diatom biomass in the Bay. The diversity of benthic diatoms varied according to the sample stations and seasons. The highest diversity was observed in August samples. The range of chlorophyll- a concentration in sediments of tidal flats for 8 years was 21~65 mg $m^{-2}$. The standing crops of benthic diatoms varied according to the studied stations and sampled seasons. The number of taxa and standing crops showed decreasing tendency year after year from all sampled stations. The distributions of standing crops and cell volumes of benthic diatoms showed similar pattern. The taxa and biomass of benthic diatoms showed low correlation coefficients with temperature variables expressed as the following equations $Y=-0.0208X^2+0.5264X+19.529(r^2=0.0269)$ and $Y=-0.9181X^2+27.011X+310.07(r^2=0.0797)$ respectively.