• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.411-421
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• 2017

Understanding the need for temperature regulation, behavior, and ecology of hibernating bats provides the possibility of conservation and management for target species. Our objective in this study was to improve understanding of the population trend and ecological requirement in Myotis formosus population in South Korea. From 2007 to 2016, total of 58 hibernacula for Myotis formosus were found across the country. Of the 58 hibernating sites of Myotis formosus, 86% (n=49) were abandoned mines and 14% (n=8) were natural caves. During the survey period, 28 (5%) bats of total 570 bats were observed in natural caves (n=8) and 542 (95%) bats were observed in abandoned mines (n=49). The internal environments of hibernacula of M. formosus were highly stable despite dramatic variation in the external environment. Specifically, we examined the population trend of the endangered bat Myotis formosus in South Korea by long-term monitoring for hibernation sites. The population trend of endangered species M. formosus showed a marked stable in hibernating population. Our results indicate that a tightly collected long-term data set may help to establish the initial approximation of population trends and manage to threats for the endangered bat species.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2009

Genetic variability is an important component in the ability of populations to adapt in the face of environmental change. Severe human impacts reduced Muzzafarnagri sheep of India from 500,000 in 1972 to 10,989 in 1973-74. Here we report for the first time the effect of this population decline on levels of genetic variability at 13 FAO recommended ovine microsatellite loci and contrast levels of variability to that in a breed from the same geographical region, which differed in numbers, by an order of magnitude (Marwari sheep). Of the 13 loci, 100% were polymorphic in both breeds. A high degree of genetic variation was observed within populations in terms of both allele diversity (number of alleles per locus, >4) and gene diversity (expected heterozygosity, >0.5), which implied that there is still a substantial amount of genetic diversity at the nuclear loci in a declining population. Nevertheless, overall low number of alleles per locus and relatively less abundance of low frequency alleles in Muzzafarnagri sheep suggested that genetic variability has been comparatively reduced in this population. Bottleneck analysis indicated that a genetic bottleneck did not occur during the most recent decline. In addition, we found that the differentiation among populations was moderate ($F_{ST}$= 11.8%). This study on assessment of genetic effects of the population declines in ovines is a step towards identification of genetically impoverished or healthy populations, which could prove to be a useful tool to facilitate conservation planning in this important species of small ruminants.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.31-36
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• 2008

Larvae of the long-tailed clawed salamander, Onychodactylus fischeri, have a relatively long larval period, spending a year or more within the stream where they hatch; therefore, a well-established larval population could be critical for the conservation of adult populations. To study the population dynamics of long-tailed clawed salamander larvae, we surveyed a field population once or twice a month from September, 2005 to June, 2006, and determined the age of larval clawed salamanders collected from three different populations in October, 2004 using skeletochronology. The age of long-tailed clawed salamander larvae ranged from 0 to 3 years. New recruitment of larvae in the population primarily occurred in November, 2005, and mid-March, 2006. Larvae with a snout-vent length of more than 30 mm disappeared from the streams in September, 2005, suggesting that two to three year-old clawed salamander larvae metamorphosed during this period.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.7
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• pp.915-921
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• 2005

Genetic variation at 25 microsatellite loci, population structure, and genetic bottleneck hypothesis were examined for Ankleshwar poultry population found in Gujrat, India. The estimates of genetic variability such as effective number of alleles and gene diversities revealed substantial genetic variation frequently displayed by microsatellite markers. The average polymorphism across the studied loci and the expected gene diversity in the population were 6.44 and 0.670${\pm}$0.144, respectively. The population was observed to be significantly differentiated into different groups, and showed fairly high level of inbreeding (f = 0.240${\pm}$0.052) and global heterozygote deficit. The bottleneck analysis indicated the absence of genetic bottleneck in the past. The study revealed that the Ankleshwar poultry breed needs appropriate genetic management for its conservation and improvement. The information generated in this study may further be utilized for studying differentiation and relationships among different Indian poultry breeds.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 2006

Environmental variables, fishing and biological data of the common squid, Todarodes pacificus were used to describe changes in structure, migration and abundance of the squid population in relation to ocean climate shifts. It was possible to consider the main groups of the squid (autumn and winter-spawned groups) as a single population to aid conservation in the waters around Korea and Japan (TWC and KOC regions). The patterns of yearly fluctuations in abundance of the squid population in the two regions were the same during 52 years of $1952{\sim}2003$. The abundance of the squid began to decrease in both regions in the early 1970s, remained low in the 1980s and the main squid groups synchronously increased in the 1990s coincident with favorable changes of thermal conditions and plankton production in those ecosystems. The mechanisms of changes in the structure, distribution and abundance of common squid population in relation to current-mediated migration circuits are explained on the basis of phenological variables responding to climate shifts.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.291-307
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• 2016

Evaluation of the extinction risk of endangered plants at international, national as well as at regional levels is essential to the implementation of plans for direct conservation activities. Reports indicate that 34 endangered plants are distributed in the middle eastern area of Korea. For each endangered plant, we investigated the sites, area of extents, population size, and factors that affect population extinction. We assessed risk factors based on 10 evaluation criteria including the results from the investigation and the life traits each endangered plant has. As a result of evaluating the risk factors, these 34 endangered plants are classified into 3 groups: the first category comprises 12 endangered plants that require active and urgent conservation of habitats due to multiple risk factors; the second group has 16 endangered plants that should be able to persist with the removal of a few direct risk factors; the third category has 6 endangered plants that can persist with minimal management due to comparatively large distributed area and numerous individuals. It was found that most major risk factors in the population of endangered plants are caused by disruption of habitats and population extinction due to the increase of human habitation in the concerned areas, development and illegal harvesting. Futhermore, ecological collapse from decreasing habitats and malfunctioning mechanism of extinction and regeneration due to the changes of vegetational environment can be the other causes. From the area of the present investigations, we selected 5 regions according to the number of species and the frequency of appearance and importance of conservation measures. Also, we suggested a conservation strategy according to the regional characteristics. We suggest that the method for evaluating extinction risk of endangered plants includes distributional data and life traits of species. In addition, we underscore the necessity for understanding population dynamics and ecological niche of the each target species.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.639-650
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• 2022

Abeliophyllum distichum Nakai, a rare plant with distylous characteristics, is native to certain parts of the Korean Peninsula. It is registered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as a globally endangered plant. This study was conducted to establish an appropriate local conservation management plan suitable for future A. distichum populations by comparing and analyzing the flowering characteristics and population size according to distyly based on the results of quantitative surveys in 14 regions, including 8 areas with native populations of A. distichum and 6 natural monument populations. The number of individuals appearing in each population group was surveyed, and the flowering individuals were identified by style as being either pin or thrum flower types as they were being examined and recorded on the site. In total, 13,130 individuals of A. distichum (7,003 flowering and 6,127 non-flowering individuals) were recorded, but the balance of the number of pin- and thrum-flowered individuals in each population was not significant (p<0.05), indicating an imbalanced state. In particular, the Yeongdong (YD) population was very disproportionate compared to other populations, suggesting that its genetic diversity was low and the possibility of inbreeding was high. The average flowering and fruiting rates by management unit were much higher in the natural monument populations (89.2% and 55.3%, respectively) than in the natural habitat populations (39.0% and 8.5%, respectively). It may be due to a difference in reproductive growth resulting from light inflow into the forest caused by the upper crown closure. The area of occupation (AOO) of A. distichum on the Korean Peninsula covered an area of 23,224.5 m². Although the natural monument population was smaller than the natural habitat population, its density was higher, likely as a result of the periodic management of natural monument populations, where the installation of protective facilities in certain areas restricts population spread. Conservation of A. distichum populations requires removing the natural monument populations suspected of anthropogenic and genetic disturbances and expanding the conservation priority population by designating new protected areas. Although the habitats of natural monument populations are managed by the Cultural Heritage Administration and local governments, there are no agencies that are responsible for managing natural habitat populations. Therefore, institutional improvement in the overall management of A. distichum should be prioritized.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.178-184
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• 2020

Background: Geladas (Theropithecus gelada), endemic to Ethiopia, are distributed closely related to the escarpments and gorge systems of the country, and large populations are found in the Simien Mountain National Park. This study was conducted in Eastern Tigray, Northern Ethiopia, from February 2018 to August 2019 in order to determine population size and composition of geladas. Total count method was used to estimate the population structure of geladas. Observations of the group of geladas based on body size and morphological characteristics were used to classify age and sex categories of the population. SPSS Version 20 was used to analyze the data. Chi-square test was used to compare sex ratio of geladas and population size among the counting sites between wet and dry seasons. Results: A total of 112 and 99 individual of geladas were counted during wet and dry seasons, respectively. Of the average gelada population recorded in this study, 11.4% were adult males, 30.3% were adult females, 12.8% were sub-adult males, 25.6% were sub-adult females, and 19.9% were unidentified juveniles. However, there was no statistically significant difference among the various age and sex groups of geladas counted during wet and dry season (χ² = 2.6, DF = 4, P > 0.05). Variations of group size along seasons were observed in this study. Sex ratio of adult male to adult female was 1:2.6 and 1:2.7 during the dry and wet seasons, respectively. Conclusion: Very small gelada population size was recorded in the current study. An average of 105.5 geladas was recorded during the study period. As this is the first report of gelada population in escarpments of Eastern Tigray, population trend of the geladas cannot decide based on the current study.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.23
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• pp.81-93
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• 2008

The analysis of ancient DNA (aDNA) in paleogenetics has become an increasingly important subject of archaeological, anthropological, biological as well as public interest. In this study, paleogenetic analyses were carried out on the human skeletal remains from a historical cemetery site in Myeongam-ri, Asan, Korea. Archaeological records show that this particular location had been used as a habitation or mortuary site as early as the Bronze Age and up until the Joseon Dynasty. Human remains of twenty individuals out of forty-nine tombs from the Goryeo to Joseon Dynasty were selected for the analysis of this study. In order to identify the genealogy of the population and traditional burial pattern of the cemetery, we conducted comparative analyses of the hyper variable regions (HVRs) in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of each sample. A number of cautious steps were taken at all experimental stages in order to avoid erroneous recombination by the segmental and modern contaminations derived from the researchers. We sequenced segmental amplicons of HVRs andassigned relevant haplogroups according to the sequence polymorphism on the basis of the known mtDNA database. The result shows that diverse haplogroups were unexpectedly present in the small population group of the Myeongam-ri site. This diversity appears to be related to the geographical conditions and archaeological properties of the Myeongam-ri site.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.1501-1510
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• 2019

Objective: An experiment was conducted to evaluate genetic diversity of 26 Chinese indigenous goats by 30 microsatellite markers, and then to define conservation priorities to set up the protection programs according to the weight given to within- and between-breed genetic diversity. Methods: Twenty-six representative populations of Chinese indigenous goats, 1,351 total, were sampled from different geographic regions of China. Within-breed genetic diversity and marker polymorphism were estimated calculating the mean number of alleles, observed heterozygosities, expected heterozygosities, fixation index, effective number of alleles and allelic richness. Conservation priorities were analyzed by statistical methods. Results: A relatively high level of genetic diversity was found in twenty-four population; the exceptions were in the Daiyun and Fuqing goat populations. Within-breed kinship coefficient matrices identified seven highly inbred breeds which should be of concern. Of these, six breeds receive a negative contribution to heterozygosity when the method was based on proportional contribution to heterozygosity. Based on Weitzman or Piyasatian and Kinghorn methods, the breeds distant from others i.e. Inner Mongolia Cashmere goat, Chengdu Brown goat and Leizhou goat obtain a high ranking. Evidence from Caballero and Toro and Fabuel et al method prioritized Jining Gray goat, Liaoning Cashmere goat, and Inner Mongolia Cashmere goat, which agree with results from Kinship-based methods. Conclusion: Conservation priorities were determined according to multiple methods. Our results suggest Inner Mongolia Cashmere goat (most methods), Jining Gray goat and Liaoning Cashmere goat (high contribution to heterozygosity and total diversity) should be prioritized based on most methods. Furthermore, Daiyun goat and Shannan White goat also should be prioritized based on consideration of effective population size. However, if one breed can continually survive under changing conditions, the straightforward approach would be to increase its utilization and attraction for production via mining breed germplasm characteristics.