• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.41-63
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to secure objective and precise data through ecosystem monitoring, to reveal ecological characteristics through comparison and analysis with past survey data, and to accumulate basic data for diagnosing the current situation and predicting changes in the ecosystem. The target site is the 'Quercus mongolica forest on the Buksa-myeon of Namsan', which was designated as an Ecological Landscape Conservation Area (ELCA) of Seoul in July 2006. The research contents are analysis of soil environment change (1986~2016), change of actual vegetation (1978~2016), and change of plant community structure (1994~2016). A total of 8 fixed surveys (400~1,200m²) were established in 1994 and 2000. Analysis items are importance value, species and population, and Shannon's species diversity. The soil environment of Namsan is acidic (pH 4.40 in 2016), which is expected to have a negative impact on tree growth and vegetation structure due to its low capacity for exchangeable cations. Quercus mongolica forest in Namsan is mainly distributed on the northern slopes. The actual vegetation area changed from 49.4% in 1978 → 80.7% in 1986 → 82.4% in 2000 → 88.3% in 2005 → 88.3% in 2009 → 70.3% in 2016. In 2016, the forest decreased by 18% compared to 2009. While there was increased growth of Quercus mongolica in the tree layer from 2009 to 2016, the overall decline in vegetation area was due to logging and fumigation management following the spread of oak wilt in 2012. As for the changes in the plant community structure, Quercus mongolica of the tree layer was damaged by oak wilt, and the potential vegetation that can form the next generation was ambiguous. In the subtree layer, the force of urbanization tree species such as Styrax japonicus, Sorbus alnifolia, and Acer palmatum. was maintained or increased. In the shrub layer, the number of trees and species increased significantly due to the open tree crown, and accordingly, the species diversity of Shannon for woody plants also increased. In Quercus mongolica forest of Namsan, various ecological changes are occurring due to the effects of urban environments such as air pollution and acid rain, the limitation of Quercus mongolica pure forest due to oak wilt, and the introduction of exotic species, thus, it is necessary to establish a management plan through continuous monitoring.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.609-620
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• 2021

This study surveyed six national parks that included a wide range of afforestation among national parks in Korea to analyze the vegetation structure of Larix kaempferi, which occupies the highest ratio among planted areas. Plots were established considering the dominant ratio, diameter at breast height and afforestation area of Larix kaempferi. The purpose of the study was to provide basic data for ecological management to promote diversity. A total of 51 plots were selected based on 400 m² quadrates. TWINSPAN was used for community classification, and each classified community was analyzed of importance percentage, species diversity, number of species, and populations. The community classification identified7 communities, all dominated by Larix kaempferi in the tree layer and classified by the appearance species of the subtree layer and shrub layer. In communities I, II, and VII that are located in the valley, Zelkova serrata, Morus bombycis, and Fraxinus rhynchophylla appeared, while dominated by Larix kaempferi were in the tree layer. Wetland deciduous broad-leaved species such as Fraxinus rhynchophylla and Morus bombycis frequently appeared in the subtree layer. In community III through VI is located on the slope, Quercus spp., such as Quercus mongolica and Quercus acutissima, mainly appeared while dominated by Larix kaempferi in the tree layer, and Quercus and wetland broad-leaved species frequently appeared in the subtree layer and shrub layer. The average species diversity of Larix kaempferi in the surveyed six national parks was 1.2090, with community III the highest at 1.5413 and community VI the lowest at 0.7042. The average number of species was 9.35±2.90, and the average population was 226.05±89.98.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.388-408
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• 2022

This study was conducted to select the indicator species (plant) according to the topographical characteristics in the Picea jezoensis forests, endangered subalpine coniferous trees. In South Korea and China (close to Baekdusan), the southern tree line limit of Picea jezoensis has meaningful geographical and latitudinal values for analyzing the ecological characteristics of P. jezoensis forests. Latitude greatly affects the geographical values of plant ecology, and the difference in latitude and habitat affects the change in species composition in forests. With prolonged environmental change, the habitat of subalpine plants will become smaller, and the plants may become extinct. As the P. jezoensis forests of South Korea and China, in particular, are in danger of disappearing without protection, it is important to monitor the population and develop a conservation strategy. Eighty-seven circular plots were established in P. jezoensis forests in South Korea and China. Through processes such as MRPP-test and NMS ordination, indicator species were selected based on this, and basic data for biodiversity assessment were presented. As a result of the Indicator Species Analysis (ISA), 5 taxa were selected from the upperstory vegetation and 18 taxa from the understory vegetation at the altitude(p<0.05). Indicator species by aspect were analyzed as 3 taxa for upperstory vegetation and 16 taxa for understory vegetation (p<0.05). In the case of indicator species according to the slope, 6 taxa for upper vegetation and 24 taxa for understory vegetation were selected(p<0.05). As for the indicator species according to their habitat, 8 taxa in upper vegetation and 65 taxa on understory vegetation were selected. As a result of MRPP-test, it was analyzed that the species composition was heterogeneous in the group of understory vegetation than that of upperstory vegetation. As a result of NMS ordination, the correlation with environmental factors of indicator species was analyzed by rock exposure for upperstory vegetation and latitude for understory vegetation (cut off level=0.3).

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.150-164
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• 2022

The objective of this study is to analyze the biodiversity changes and characteristics of the benthic macroinvertebrate community in the Nakdong River with eight weirs, which was constructed as one of the Four Major River Restoration Projects from May to October 2020. The study also includes the analysis of changes in the major groups of benthic macroinvertebrates for about ten years, from 2010 to 2020. The surveys collected 97 species of benthic macroinvertebrates belonging to 83 genera, 52 families, 18 orders, five classes, three phyla, and 128.1 individuals/m². Chironomidae sp. and Tubificidae spp., which are pollutant indicators, dominated throughout the sections. The community analysis result shows the average dominant index and the diversity index of 0.62±0.20 and 1.87±0.63, respectively, and indicated the most stability of the freshwater ecosystem in the upper stream of the Nakdong River. The survey showed dominance by Chironomidae sp. at the center of the Nakdong River weir and the most unstable community in Chilgok and Gangjeong Goryeong weirs. The results of the community stability analysis showed a high distribution of the characteristic group I with high resilience and resistance and small distribution of characteristic group III with low resistance and resilience, indicating a very unstable condition of communities in the Nakdong River weir section. Predators were relatively abundant among the functional feeding groups (FFGs), whereas shredders, gathering-collectors, and filtering-collectors were relatively lower. Among the habitat orientation groups (HOGs), burrowers and climbers were dominant, indicating a wide distribution of groups in ecosystems with low dissolved oxygen. An endangered species level II of Macromia daimoji was found in Sangju and Nakdan weirs. The analysis results for 10 years from 2010 showed that the number of species and populations increased immediately after the dam construction but plummeted in 2016 and are now stabilizing. Chironomidae spp. has been dominant in all sections over the past 10 years, and they are currently maintained at a rate of about 50%. The EPT groups have decreased significantly since 2011, and the Plecoptera and Trichoptera of the group have not yet been restored. The population of Tubificidae spp. showed an increase after construction was completed in 2012 and drastically increased in 2015 and 2020. The species of Cristaria plicata, designated as endangered species level I, has not been observed since 2011 in Hapcheon Changnyeong weir. Moreover, Macromia daimoji was rarely observed in seven weirs until 2015, and it has been confirmed that the current distribution habitat has decreased rapidly.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.676-683
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• 2022

Due to the effects of rapid changes in the living environment since 2000 and the recent unforeseen pandemic, people are refraining from domestic and international traveling and movement, and outdoor activities for health and the public value of forest trails, called Dullegil Trail in Korea, have become more important. This study estimated the environmental value of the tentatively named "East-West Trail," which connects the forest trails crossing Chungcheong and Gyeongsang Provinces using CVM (Contingent Valuation Method). It surveyed visitors to the East-West Trail, and 725 questionnaires were used for analysis. The average characteristics of respondents were those who exercised 2-3 times per week, visited a forest trail not far from their residence with friends or family, and showed a tendency to spend 50 thousand Korean won or more per visit. Visitors to the Dullegil Trail felt that there was a shortage of information boards on the forest trail, and they preferred a shelter in appropriate locations. We used a double-bounded dichotomous choice (BDDC) logit model proposed by Hanemann to measure the conservation value of the East-West Trail. It was estimated that the environmental value that a visitor to the East-West Trail could obtain was 30,087 won per trip. The estimated environmental value of the East-West Trail can be converted to about 94 billion won total visitors annually based on the population belonging to the direct-use zone near the East-West Trail. As there has been no study on the environmental value of forest trails using CVM, the results of this study will be able to suggest the feasibility of the government policies on forest trails.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.186-200
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• 2022

In order to understand the species composition and distribution characteristics of larval assemblages in the East Sea, Korea, larvae were collected at 13 stations every other month from February to December 2018. Fish larvae were identified through DNA barcoding along with morphological methods, and as the result, a total of 104 taxonomic groups appeared during the survey. Among these, Engraulis japonicus, which accounted for 76.2% of the total population, was the most dominant species, followed by Maurolicus japonicus, which accounted for 15.0%. In addition, Ammodytes personatus, Champsodon snyderi, Scomber japonicus and Echelus uropterus appeared more frequently than other taxa. The above six species accounted for 93.2% of the total catch. The number of taxa and the amount of larvae collected in the survey area were higher during the high water temperature periods (June to October) than during the low water temperature periods (February, April and December). Analysis of similarity (ANOSIM) showed a statistically significant difference in monthly larval assemblages. The results of the canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) show that the distributions of larval community were mainly affected by sea surface temperature during low water temperature periods, and various environmental factors such as salinity, dry weight of zooplankton, and the concentrations of nutrients during high water temperature periods.

• Korean Journal of Weed Science
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.147-156
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• 1997

The survey of weed population in apple orchard was conducted to investigate basic information on weed flora and its ecology at 27 locations in 1996. The weed species observed include 7 species of grasses, 60 species of broadleaves and 2 species of sedges, and the ratio of annual weed vs perennial weed was 64 : 36. Major dominant weed species by frequence were Chenopodium album, Capsella bursa-pastoris, Digitaria sanguinalis, Rorippa islandica, Alopecurus aequalis and Erigeron canadensis. While, on the basis of dry weight, the most dominant weeds were C. album followed by E. canadensis, A. aequalis, R islandica and R indica. The dominant weed species in middle-north Kyeongbuk region were C. bursa-pastoris, C. album, R indica and R islandica, were E. canadensis, Persicaria hydropiper, A. aequalis and Arenaria serpylliforia in Chungbuk region and were A. aequalis, E. canadenris and R islandica in Honam region.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.305-320
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• 2005

Recently 64 species in Korea have been ranked as rare and endangered taxa by the Ministry of Environment using two categories, I and II. The original threat categories produced by the Ministry of Environment were developed to provide a standard for specifying animals and plants in danger of extinction and has been influential sources of information used in species conservation in Korea. However, the criteria by Ministry of Environment were applied to the whole taxa only by regional boundaries, especially in South Korea, rather than international context, and it also lacked an explicit framework that was necessary to ensure repeatability among taxa because of the absence of quantitative criteria to measure the likelihood of extinction. The World Conservation Union (IUCN) has developed quantitative criteria for assessing the conservation status of species. The threatened species categories, the 2000 IUCN Red List, proposed by SSC (Species Survival Commission) of IUCN have become widely recognized internationally. Details of threatened Korean plants, identified by applying the IUCN threat categories and definitions, were listed and analyzed. The number of species identified as threatened was only 34 out of 64 taxa (48.4%), while the rest of taxa were rejected from the original lists. Many of the species (51.6%, 33 taxa) excluded from the original list proposed by Ministry of Environment do not qualify as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable because these taxa were widely distributed either in Japan or in China/far eastern Russia and there is no evidence of substantial decline in these countries. An evaluation of taxa in Korea has been carried out only based on subjective views and qualitative data, rather than quantitative scientific data, such as rates of decline, distribution range size, population size, and risk of extinction. Therefore, the national lists undermine the credibility of threatened species lists and invite misuse, which have been raised by other cases, qualitative estimate of risk, political influence, uneven taxonomic or geographical coverage. The increasing emphasis on international responsibilities means that global scale is becoming more significant. The current listings by Environment of Ministry of Korea should be challenged, and the government should seek to facilitate the resolution of disagreements. Especially the list should be flexible enough to handle uncertainty and also incorporates detailed, quantitative data. It is suggested that the highest priorities for the Red List should be given to endemic species in Korea first. After setting up the list of endemic species to Korea, quantitative data on population size and structure, distributional range, rated of decline, and habitat fragmentation should be collected as one of long term projects for the Red list categories. Transparency and accountability are the most important key factors. Also, species assessors are named and data sources referenced are required for the future objective evaluations on Korean plant taxa.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.290-294
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• 2009

Larval development of Nannopaya pygmaea Rambur (Libellulidae), an endangered dragonfly in Korea, was studied using an introduced lariat population in an artificial wetland habitat. Artificial habitat was created in a green house which imitated a small wetland in Boryeong-si, Chungcheongnam-do, Korea, where N. pygmaea inhabited. A total of 300 N. pygmaea larvae were introduced to the artificial habitat in June 2007. Larvae were recaptured five times between June 2007 and November 2008 for measurement of body length. As a result, the initial and recaptured populations (Recaptured I, II, III, IV, and V populations, respectively) contained two body size groups [initial 6.20$\pm$0.34 mm and 7.94$\pm$0.46 mm (mean$\pm$SD); Recaptured I 2.84$\pm$0.43 mm and 5.16$\pm$0.83 mm; Recaptured II 5.96$\pm$0.66 mm and 8.02$\pm$0.35 mm; Recaptured III 5.97$\pm$0.73 mm and 7.82$\pm$0.37 mm; Recaptured IV 7.04$\pm$0.93 mm and 8.52$\pm$0.39 mm; Recaptured V 5.72$\pm$0.60 mm and 7.71$\pm$0.30 mm]. Our rearing experiment evidenced that the recaptured I-V populations are the offspring of the initial population and the offspring grew approximately 3 mm at 470 degree days. It was also estimated that N. pygmaea larvae need approximately 100 degree days to grow 0.7 mm in body length.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.174-189
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• 2012

The objective of this study was to determine the weight-length relations and condition factor (K) of Zacco platypus, along the trophic gradients from oligotrophic to eutrophic state in six reservoir ecosystems ($B_aR$, $Y_yR$, $J_yR$, $G_pR$, $Y_dR$, and $M_sR$), during 2008~2010. The species was selected as a sentinel species for the study, due to its wide distribution and wide trophic gradient. The analysis of trophic state index (TSI), based on total phosphorus (TP) and chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), indicated that reservoirs of $Y_yR$ and $B_aR$ were classified as to be in an oligotrophic state (30~40), the $J_yR$ and $G_pR$ as mesotrophic (40~50), and the $Y_dR$ and $M_sR$ as eutrophic state (50~70). Total 47 species and 26,226 individuals were sampled from 6 reservoirs and sensitive species dominated in the oligotrophic reservoirs ($Y_yR$ and $B_aR$). In the mean time, the tolerant speciesdominated the community in the mesotrophic ($J_yR$ and $G_pR$) and eutrophic ($Y_dR$ and $M_sR$) reservoirs. Regression analysis of body weight, against the total length, indicated that the regression coefficient (b value) was lower in the oligotrophic reservoir (2.77~2.79) than the mesotrophic (3.07~3.17) and eutrophic reservoirs (3.15~ 3.21). This result suggests that the population growth rate Zacco platypus reflected the trophic gradients of the reservoirs. The analysis of condition factor (K) against the total length showed positive slopes (b>3.0) in mesotrophic and eutrophic reservoirs, and a negative slope (b<3.0) in oligotrophic reservoir. The variation of the regression slope of "b" in Z. platypus was accounted for 79.7% [$b=0.012{\times}TSI(TP)+2.395$, p=0.017] by the variation of TSI (TP) and 82.2% [$b=0.013{\times}TSI(Chl-a)+2.36$, p=0.013] by the variation of TSI (Chl-a). The proportion of DELT abnormality increased as the trophic state increases in the reservoirs. The overall data suggest that the growth of the fish populations, based on the length-weight relations and condition factor, reflected the trophic state of nutrient and phytoplankton biomass of the reservoir waters. Thus, in spite of the tolerant characteristics of Z. platypus, hypertrophic states might negatively affect the health of the population.