• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.566-575
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• 2008

Twenty-five chipmunk species occur in the world, of which only the Siberian chipmunk, Tamias sibiricus, inhabits Asia. To investigate mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence variations and population structure of the Siberian chipmunk in northeastern Asia, we examined mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences (1140 bp) from 3 countries. Analyses of 41 individuals from South Korea and 33 individuals from Russia and northeast China resulted in 37 haplotypes and 27 haplotypes, respectively. There were no shared haplotypes between South Korea and Russia - northeast China. Phylogenetic trees and network analysis showed 2 major maternal lineages for haplotypes, referred to as the S and R lineages. Haplotype grouping in each cluster was nearly coincident with its geographic affinity. In particular, 3 distinct groups were found that mostly clustered in the northern, central and southern parts of South Korea. Nucleotide diversity of the S lineage was twice that of lineage R. The divergence between S and R lineages was estimated to be 2.98-0.98 Myr. During the ice age, there may have been at least 2 refuges in South Korea and Russia - northeast China. The sequence variation between the S and R lineages was 11.3% (K2P), which is indicative of specific recognition in rodents. These results suggest that T. sibiricus from South Korea could be considered a separate species. However, additional information, such as details of distribution, nuclear genes data or morphology, is required to strengthen this hypothesis.

• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.99-104
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• 2010

The subfamily Murinae is a very controversial group concerning their phylogenetic relationship. Previous studies could not resolve phylogeny among four genera Apodemus, Micromys, Mus and Rattus of the Muridae. In the present study, eight rodent species resident in South Korea were collected and phylogenetically analyzed based on sequence data of five mitochondrial and nuclear DNA regions: 12S rRNA, cytochrome b gene (cyt b), cytochrome oxidase II (COII), control region of mitochondrial DNA, and a thyroglobulin (Tg) of nuclear DNA. According to the phylogeny of the concatenated data, M. musculus separated early in Murinae (ML 100%; BA 1.00 pp) and the genus Rattus grouped with the harvest mouse, M. minutes; these were separated from the genus Apodemus with relatively strong support (ML 74%; BA 0.76 pp). The Siberian chipmunk population was also examined using the five genes to obtain better resolution. The phylogeny for Korean rodents determined using the 12S rRNA, cyt b, COII and control regions discriminated the Siberian chipmunk populations from Korea, Russia, and China.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.51-58
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• 2006

The purpose of this research presents a method to position and makes the structure for eco-corridors reasonably with collectable analysing results of various effects shown in mammals' road-kill at 429 points. Target animals of this research are Leopard cat, Siberian weasel, Raccoon dog, Korean hare, Eurasian red squirrel, Siberian chipmunk and Water deer. The results derived from the empirical analysis on the contents above are followed. First, according to the results as for Leopard cat road kill analysis, which is designated as Endangered Species Class II, the eco-corridor might be located at near village having stead food in order to decrease the frequencies of road-kill, because its road kill points were mainly collected at 4 lane hilly road with mountain-road-farm area geological type of. Second, because Siberian weasel's road kill was detected at 2 lane hilly road with mountain-road-stream geological type, the eco-corridor might be located at near a mill to decrease road-kill frequencies. Third, the road-kill frequency of Eurasian red squirrel can be reduced when the eco-corridor is located at the area across coniferous tree near 4 lane west sea freeway with mountain-road-mountain. Fourth, the road-kill of Raccoon dog can be reduced when the eco-corridor is located at 4 lane mountain road or hilly road with the geological type having farm land-road-mountain(stream). Fifth, Korean hare's road-kill can be reduced when the eco-corridor is located at grass land across ridge line of mountain, because wild rabbit road kill was happened at 4 lane mountain road or 2 lane mountain road(mountain-road-mountain). Sixth, As for Siberian chipmunk, the eco-corridor might be located at the side slope of mountain road at 2 lane mountain road under the speed of 60km/h with mountain-road-mountain. Seventh, For Water deer, the eco-corridor might be located at 4 lane hilly road with mountain-road-farm land. As for Common otter, Amur hedgehog, Yellow-throated marten, Weasel, it is difficult to specify the proper site of eco-corridor due to the lack of data. Eco-corridors for carnivores might be well located at 4 lane hilly road or 2 lane hilly road with mountain-road-farm land, and the track for herbivores might be well located as a overhead bridge on mountain-road-mountain type across mountains. In order to position eco-corridors for wildlife properly, we have to research animal's behavior with ecological background, and to consider the local uniqueness and regularly collect the empirical road-kill data in long term 3 to 5 year, which can be the foundation for the more suitable place of wild life eco-corridors.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.94 no.2 s.159
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• pp.112-116
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• 2005

This study was conducted to obtain the information of distribution, protection and management for mammal species in fragmented forest areas around the road from June 2002 to May 2003 in 9 study sites of Baekdugdaegan mountains, Korea. Field signs of twelve mammals, moles Molera robusta, Korean hares Lepus coreanus, Manchurian chipmunk Tamias sibiricus, red squirrels Sciurus vulgaris, Korean racoon dogs Nyctereutes procyonoides, Siberian weasels Mustela sibirica, badgers Meles meles, otters Lutra lutra, Bengal cats Felis bengalensis, wild boars Sus scrofa, water deer Hydropotes inermis and roe deer Capreolus pygargus were recorded in this study. There were no differences in total number of species between 50 m areas and 50-100 m areas from road in snow and non-snow season. Number of mammals' field signs were different in non-snow season between both areas. Red squirrels and Siberian weasels were more abundant in 50 m areas, and Korean hares and Manchurian chipmunks were in 50-100 m areas. Habitat using pattern of mammal species may be affected by the road. Reasonable road construction and maintenance would be needed for protection and management of wildlife and their habitats.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.161-168
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• 2011

Siberian chipmunks, Tamias sibiricus, are one of several popular companion animals found in the pet shops of South Korea. At present, however, there have been no studies done in South Korea examining their origin even though they could be potential carriers of zoonotic diseases, and are a species of concern for efficient conservation and management strategies. Sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (1140 bp) were determined to investigate the origin of Siberian chipmunks sold in four South Korean pet shops through comparison with sequence data from animals of known locality. Nine Siberian chipmunks were collected from pet shops in South Korea, which resulted in nine haplotypes. One (AR) of these coincided with the haplotype previously described. Phylogenetic and network analyses using 53 haplotypes including 45 haplotypes from GenBank showed three phylogenetic groups in South Korea, almost concordant to locality, designated as northern, central, and southern parts as described in a previous study. Of the nine individuals examined from the pet shops, eight were clustered into the northern phylogroup but one (cgrb9153) was grouped with the southern phylogroup, implying that at least the Siberian chipmunks examined in this study did not originate from other countries. It is likely that most individuals sold in the pet shops of Seoul were caught in the wild in Gyeonggi-do and Gangwon-do, or are maternal descendants of captive-bred individuals originating from the northern part of South Korea. It is recommended that conservation and management units of Korean chipmunks should be examined in further detail.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.379-381
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• 2013

To know the status of sparganum (plerocercoid of Spirometra erinacei) infection in the Korean wild life, several species of wild animals were captured in Gangwon-do and examined for their status of infection with spargana. From February to December 2011, a total of 62 wild boars, 5 badgers, 1 weasel, 1 Siberian chipmunk, and 53 wild rodents were captured, and their whole muscles were examined with naked eyes for the presence of spargana worms. From the weasel and 1 wild boar, a total of 5 spargana specimens were extracted. The weasel was for the first time recorded as an intermediate or paratenic/transport host of S. erinacei in Korea, and both the weasel (Mustela sibirica manchurica) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) were added to the list of wild animals carrying spargana.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.34 no.5 s.118
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• pp.52-58
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• 2006

Wildlife roadkill is a serious problem for road planners and biologists concerned with traffic safety, species conservation, and animal welfare. The objective of this paper was to analyze the effect of land use on the frequency of mammal roadkills. This study took part in three steps. First, data for 1,279 road kills of nine species were collected by survey over 26 months on 107km of roads near the Mt. Jirisan area. Second, the type of land use near the roadkill points was analyzed, and the area of each land use within loom of the road was calculated using GIS. Finally, the question of whether the land use affects the Sequency of mammal roadkills was analyzed by determining the density of roadkill occurrences for each land-use type. The results of the study were as follows. First, the roadkill density of all species was highest near grasslands, especially natural grasslands. Second, when comparing forests and rice fields, roadkill densities of the Eurasian red squirrel, Siberian chipmunk and Korean hare were higher near the forests, while the densities of the raccoon dog, water deer and leopard cat were higher near rice fields. The results of this study could be an essential information source for mitigating the roadkill problem in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.418-428
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• 2023

This study was conducted to clarify the daily activity patterns overlap between hikers and mammals from 2015 to 2019 in the Baekdudaegan protected area. To investigate relationship behaviors between hikers and mammals, we set the camera traps on the ridge of the Baekdudaegan protected area. Daily activity patterns of yellow-throated marten (Martes flavigula) and Siberian chipmunk (Eutamias sibiricus) were highly overlapped with hiker total study periods. Moreover, daily activity patterns of Siberian roe deer (Caperohus pygargus) and water deer (Hydropotes inermis) were highly overlapped with hikers only in spring. In winter, daily activity patterns of wild boar (Sus scrofa) were overlapped with hikers. However, leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis), raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides), and Eurasian badger (Meles leucurus) did not significantly overlap with hikers during the study periods. The daily activity patterns of 8 mammals differed by species-specific behavior and temporal characteristics. Overlap of daily activity patterns between mammals and hikers were differed in each season. Differences in daily activity pattern overlap between mammals and humans may lead to differences in human impact on mammal populations. Information on the interaction between hikers and mammals on species-specific and temporal-specific behavior could be basic ecological data for management and conservation of mammal populations and their habitats.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.53-59
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• 2013

This study investigated mammal fauna in the sabbatical area of Mt. Unmun, Kyungsangbuk-do from December, 2007 to September, 2009. A total of 24 species belonging to 11 Families, 6 Orders, were identified in the survey area. Dominant species were as follows: Chinese water deer (Hydropotes inermis), Siberian chipmunk (Tamias sibiricus), Korean mole (Mogera wogura), and East Asian field mouse (Apodemus peninsulae). Especially, four Legal Protection Species specified as National Monument (NM) and Endangered Species (ES) found in this survey were as follows: Flying squirrel (Petromys volans; NM #328 and ES level II), Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra; NM #330 and ES level I), Leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis; ES level II) and Marten (Martes flavigula; ES level II). These results on the geographical distribution of various mammal species and Legal Protection Species indicate that this area is a valuable ecosystem for native mammal species. On the other hand, many feral cats were also found and specified as a management species. The results of this study show that further long-term investigation and management plan are needed to protect against harmful species and maintain the native ecosystem of Mt. Unmun.