• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.334-343
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• 2014

BACKGROUND: Shorebirds use a variety of wetlands as their stopover sites to replenish energy and nutrient reserves along the migration route. It is increasingly important to understand how birds use the remaining available habitats during migration period, because shorebird stopover sites are often altered and destroyed. Rice fields serve as a major inland stopover site for migrating shorebirds. However, the information on habitat use patterns of shorebirds in rice fields is very limited in Korea. Therefore, we studied the patterns of shorebird abundance and their habitat use in rice fields during spring migration period in western-central Korea. METHODS AND RESULTS: Surveys were conducted at interval of 2-3 days during the spring migration period of 2014 at rice fields of mid-western Korea. We recorded the location of the observed birds on the rice field map according to the local habitat type. The habitat types were divided by physical structure and cultivation methods. Fifteen shorebird species and 7,852 individuals were recorded during the survey period. The number of shorebird species and their abundance began to increase from the beginning of flooding in late-April, and reached a maximum in early-May. After rice transplantation, the number of shorebird species and their abundance dramatically declined. Shorebirds selectively used paddy and levee rather than road and ditch and most species used shallow depth field type. Plowed field types were less attractive to most species. CONCLUSION: Flooding rice fields were functioned as stopover sites for a variety of shorebird species during spring migration period. Furthermore, these results provide that the appropriate agricultural practices can be improving the habitat quality for shorebirds.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.241-248
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• 2008

We studied concentrations of trace elements such as iron, zinc, copper, lead and cadmium in three shorebird species from Saemankeum mudflat, Korea$(1999{\sim}2000)$, and also analysed correlations between elements in livers. Iron(ANOVA, p=0.018), copper(ANOVA, p=0.043), lead(ANOVA, p=<0.001) and cadmium (ANOVA, p=0.016) concentrations significantly differed among shorebird species, but zinc concentrations wasn't different among species. We suggested that iron, zinc, and copper concentrations were within a range for normal and are maintained by normal homeostatic mechanisms for wild birds. Lead concentrations in Great Knots Calidris tenuirostris$(5.76{\pm}2.14{\mu}g/dry\;g)$ were at the background level but Red-necked Stints Calidris ruficollis$(29.4{\pm}10.6{\mu}g/dry\;g)$ and Terek Sandpipers Xenus sinereus$(15.9{\pm}11.9{\mu}g/dry\;g)$ were within the exposed level for wild birds. In particular, Red-necked Stints were nearly poisoned level. Cadmium concentrations in Terek Sandpipers and Great Knots were at the background concentration, but Red-necked Stints were greater than the poisoned level$(3{\mu}g/dry\;g)$. We found significantly correlations between lead and cadmium concentrations, but other elements didn't find.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.73-77
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• 2004

Movement of shorebirds for roosting was studied to find their response to insufficient roosting area on Ganghwa Island. It was taken from two kinds of aspects of population fluctuation and direct observation of movement from March to October in 2002. Based on the data from their weekly fluctuation and flight observation, shorebirds on Ganghwa Island moved to roosts located far away. Shorebirds feeding at southern Ganghwa Island moved to Yeongjong Island for roosting during the spring tide period. High tide count showed that the number of shorebirds on Yeongjong Island increased strikingly, while the number of birds on Ganghwa Island decreased. As the tide level increased, the number of shorebirds on Ganghwa Island decreased in the fall migrating season (r$_{s}$= -0.81, p＜0.001), whereas that on Yeongjong Island was not correlated significantly. Direct observation showed that some of the birds on the upper tidal zone of Ganghwa Island moved directly to the northern mudflat of Yeongjong Island during the flowing tide or dropped by flat zone on Seondu-ri. Insufficient coastal wetlands on Ganghwa Island induced them to move away from the island for roosting place and to endure costly flight energy expenditure. The development of wetlands on the southern Yeongjong Island would make them have no place available to roosts. Therefore this study proposes that shorebird roosts on Ganghwa Island should be created to conserve their habitat.t.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.349-355
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• 2016

In July 2014, a nematode species, Schistorophus cirripedesmi Rhizhikov and Khokhlova, 1964, was recovered from a bar-tailed godwit, Limosa lapponica baueri that was stored in a $-20^{\circ}C$ freezer in the Chungnam Wild Animal Rescue Center. The bird was collected in 2012 from the coastal region of Pyeongtaek-si (City), Gyeonggi-do (Province) in the Republic of Korea, although the exact date is not clear. At necropsy, 9 nematodes were found in the gizzard of the bird. The parasites had 4 horn-like cephalic cuticular ornamentations. After morphometric comparison and morphological observations, including scanning electron microscopy, the nematodes were identified as S. cirripedesmi. This is the first description of a nematode species in a shorebird in Korea. This is also the first time this genus and species have been found in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.149-157
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• 2007

This study focused on patterning waterbirds occurrences at the western costal area of the Korean Peninsula in winter and relating the occurrence patterns with their environmental factors. Waterbird communities were monitored at 10 different study areas, and the composition of land cover as environmental factors was estimated at each study area. Overall dabbling ducks were the most abundant with 84% of total individuals, followed by shorebird and diving ducks. Species Anae platyrhynchos was the first dominant species, and Anas formosa was the second one. Self-organizing map (SOM), an unsupervised artificial neural network, was applied for patterning wintering waterbird communities, and identified 6 groups according to the differences of communities compositions. Each group reflected the differences of indicator species as well as their habitats.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.837-847
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• 2016

In this study, the bird fauna of Sihwa Lake in Gyeonggi Province were investigated from 2009 to 2014 to identify the effect of the restored intertidal zone on bird community. Based upon the analysis of the habitat status and distribution change of water birds in the intertidal zone, the following conclusions were obtained. The number of water bird individuals increased by approx. 40 thousand after the restoration. Most of water bird species increased, but diving ducks decreased. Analysis of the number of individuals of water birds before and after the intertidal zone restoration showed that there was a significant increase in the number of shorebird individuals. There is a habitat use pattern change in the southern tideland intertidal zone that includes the largest area of widened intertidal zone and the inland waters of the intertidal zone. This is related to the change of benthic ecosystem which is the food source of birds. The benthic ecosystem in restoring Sihwa Lake has been stabilized with a decrease in opportunistic species and consistent increase in equilibrium species that are sensitive to pollution. As a result, the environmental conditions for shorebirds have been improved. The restoration of intertidal zone affected the habitat use and distribution patterns of water birds in a short period of time. Compared to before restoration, all the water birds now use the wide area of the intertidal zone with no partiality and it is confirmed that the restoration greatly affected the distribution of shorebirds and swan & geese. This study was conduced to identify the effects of an artificial restoration of intertidal zone due to tidal power generation of bird species. In terms of maintaining and improving biodiversity, the intertidal zone restoration was recognized to be important and still shows positive results. This study is expected to provide a direction when an alternative is required to maintain and improve biodiversity in a similar situation in the future.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.295-303
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• 2018

Inland wetlands in the Republic of Korea provide key breeding and wintering habitats, while coastal wetlands provide nutrient-rich habitats for stopover sites for East Asia/Australasia Flyway(EAAF) migrants. However, since the 1960's, Korea has reclaimed these coastal wetlands gradually for agriculture and urban expansion. The habitat loss has rippled across global populations of migrant shorebirds in EAAF. To protect a similar loss, the United States, specifically Missouri, developed the moist-soil management technique. Wetland impoundments are constructed from levees with water-flow control gates with specific soils, topography, available water sources, and target goals. The impoundments are subjected to a combination of carefully timed and regulated flooding and drawdown regimes with occasional soil disturbance. This serves a dual purpose of removing undesirable vegetation, while maximizing habitat and forage for wildlife. Flooding and drawdown schedules must be dynamic with constantly shifting climate conditions. Korea's latitude ($N33^{\circ}25^{\prime}{\sim}N38^{\circ}37^{\prime}$) is comparable to Missouri ($N36^{\circ}69^{\prime}{\sim}N40^{\circ}41^{\prime}$); as such, moist-soil management could prove to be an effective wetland restoration technique for Korea. In order to meet specific conservation goals (i.e. shorebird staging site restoration), it is necessary to test the proposed methodology on a site that can meet the required specifications for moist-soil management. Moist-soil management has the potential to not only create key habitat for endangered wildlife, but also provide valuable ecosystem services, including water filtration.