• Proceedings of the National Institute of Ecology of the Republic of Korea
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.13-22
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• 2022

In this study, we investigated the water quality and fish community of the Gudam Wetland, a riverine wetland in the middle-upper reaches of the Nakdong River, during March-October 2020. The main results were as follows: average annual flow rate: 45.0±23.7 m³/s, flow velocity: 0.4±0.3 m/s, water depth: 1.4±0.4 m, water temperature: 17.5±0.8℃, pH: 7.8±0.2, electrical conductivity: 121.6±19.0 ㎲/cm, dissolved oxygen concentration: 11.4±0.9 mg/L, suspended solids concentration: 3.8±2.0 mg/L, and the water quality was classified as Ia (very good). A total of 754 individual fish belonging to 4 orders, 7 families, and 19 species were investigated. Cyprinidae was the dominant group, with 13 species. The dominant species was Zacco platypus (39.3%), followed by Pseudogobio esocinus (17.5%). There were 8 (42.1%) endemic Korean species and 1 exotic species, Micropterus salmoides. Four species were carnivores, six were insectivores, and nine were omnivores. Regarding tolerance to environmental changes, 6 species were tolerant, 11 had intermediate tolerance, and 2 were sensitive. Fish community analysis revealed dominance of 0.57, diversity of 2.04, evenness of 0.69, and richness of 2.72, indicating a diverse and stable fish community. The fish assessment index showed that the assessment class was B (average 62.5), which was higher than that of major streams of the Nakdong River (class C). For sustainable conservation of the Gudam Wetland, management strategies such as minimizing aggregate collection and preventing inflow of non-point pollutants are required.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.39 no.3 s.117
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• pp.310-319
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• 2006

The objective of study was to evaluate ecological health from seven sampling locations of Yoogu Stream, one of the tributaries of Guem River, July and September 2005. The research approach was based on the Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) using fish assemblage and Qualitative Habitat Evaluation Index (QHEI) using fish assemblage. The models of IBI and QHEI were modified as 10 metric model and 11 metric model, respectively, for the regional applications. In Yoogu Stream, value of IBI were averaged 29.5 (n=7) which is judged as a 'fair condition'. The IBI model scores, at the site 3 and 7, were estimated as 23 and 24, indicating a 'poor${\sim}$fair condition' while, site 5 was estimated as 28, 'fair condition'. The remaining sites were between 31 and 34, indicating 'fair${\sim}$good condition'. According to the analysis of QHEI, the average was estimated as 136, 'fair${\sim}$good condition'. Spatial variation the QHEI were evident; site 1 and site 4 were 186 and 120 respectively, indicating an 'excellent and fair${\sim}$good conditions'. Site 3 was 69, fair condition while the other sites were 128${\sim}$156, good condition.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.216-223
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• 2015

The conservation project to protect an endangered fish, Gobiobotia naktongensis was executed against declining the gene diversity of the fish after the construction of Youngju Dam in a sand-bed stream (Naeseongcheon Stream). We tried to move the populations of G. naktongensis from submerged planned sites to alternative habitats, bred artificially and augmented the juveniles to optimal habitat, and monitored the results of the restoration implementation. No entity of G. naktongensis was confirmed at the planned submerged sites despite attempting to capture more than 8 times and eventually the movement to alternative habitat could not be implemented. About 40 individuals of G. naktongensis were captured in the Naeseongcheon Stream and a total of 5,000 individuals were artificially spawned up. The population of juvenile inherited the genetic diversity from the brood stock. The bred juveniles were discharged at the selected optimal site that had a habit condition what was similar to their natural habitat. The micro-dispersion around the discharging area was found at the early stages of the augmentation. The re-capturing rate of discharged juveniles was reduced as time passed. The discharged juveniles seemed to adapt to the natural environment of Naeseongcheon Stream. The observation of their high abdominal distension and excrement demonstrated that the juveniles fed successfully in the discharging area. Therefore, securement of genetic homogeneity and enhancement of restoration population of G. naktongensis in upstream and downstream of Youngju Dam site from the artificial seed producing seemed to be primarily successful and long-term monitoring and analysis of the effect was expected to be necessary.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.375-383
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• 2023

To determine the cause of the population decline in Gobiobotia naktongensis, substrate preference and burying behaviour were investigated in this study. In general, the species was shown to prefer a substrate size of 1 mm or less, depending on the flow. In addition, the burying depth varied according to the size of the fish and increased with a decrease in water temperature. Our findings showed that the main cause of the population reduction was the physical changes in the substrate structure due to the dams or barrages construction. Notably, the accumulation of silt and mud in the substrate upon the formation of an upstream lentic water region for structural construction and bed armouring caused by scouring and reduced downstream inflow of fine sediment were deterministic in the fish habitat changes, causing problems in burying. As sand substrate structure is critical for the survival and inhabitation of psammophilous species, efficient strategies should be developed with proper habitat management to reduce the anthropogenic damage

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.172-182
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• 2009

This study was to analyze characteristics based on tolerance and trophic guilds and to determine the level of total mercury in tissues of sentinel species, Zacco platypus at 3 sampling sites of the Mangyeong River in 2007. Total sampled fishes were 26 species and the most dominant species was Zacco temminckii (47%). Fish community analysis was resulted that eveness index and diversity index showed low value at S1. However, diversity index and richness index at other sites showed high. According to various guilds analysis, relative abundance of sensitive species was 70% and 42% at S1 and S2, respectively. While sensitive species were decreased (1%) and tolerant species were increased (60%) at S3. It was mainly carried to the impacts of wastewater treatment plants near the location. Relative abundance of insectivore species was decreased from up (S1) to midstream area (S3). In addition, chemical water quality, based on analyses of BOD, COD, TP, TN, EC, MPN and SS concentration showed similar trends. Qualitative Habitat Evaluation Index (QHEI) was averaged 164, judged as "good" habitat condition. Average concentrations of total [Hg] was 146.9 ${\mu}g$ $kg^{-1}$. In the muscles of total [Hg] was the highest, and then followed by kidney, vertebrae, liver, and gills. According to FDA standards (500 ${\mu}g$ $kg^{-1}$) of Korea, total [Hg] has not affected to the individual fish health.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.175-189
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• 2015

The objective of this study was to analyze characteristics of distribution of amphibian species and the affecting ecological factors. For the study, habitat environment factors were determined and applied to a habitat suitability model for the data collected from the Seom River in Hoengseong County and Wonju City, Gangwon Province, Korea between March 2013 to October 2013. The analyzed amphibian species were Rana nigromaculata, Hyla japonica, Rana dybowski, and Rana rugosa Temminck and Schlegel, and a logistic regression model was used with the pseudo-absence data. The result of the model analysis suggests that the major factors for Rana nigromaculata are distance to vegetation and rock and that for Hyla japonica is waterway. Rana dybowski and Rana rugosa Temminck and Schlegel have similar habitat characteristics, but the latter is shown to be dominant due to its wider habitat preference. According to the species richness model, the analyzed amphibian species are shown to have tendency to move between valleys or streams. This study quantitatively analyzed habitat environment characteristics using species distribution model, however, there is a limitation in terms of analysis on food factor and connectivity with other species. Combined with additional density or habitat analysis on birds or fish, this study can lead to more comprehensive analysis on biological environment factors.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.652-663
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• 2019

The purpose of this study was to conduct ecological health assessments by using the fish communities in the Manchurian trout habitat. Sampling was conducted twice in July and September 2018. In the survey, 1,119 individuals belonging to 16 species and seven families were collected. The dominant species by number was Rhynchocypris kumgangensis and the subdominant species was Zacco koreanus. Korean endemic species represented 73.33% at Geybang Stream and 76.92% at Naerin Stream. Community analysis revealed that the structure of the fish community was unstable by the dominance index 0.63 (±0.09)-0.97 (±0.01), the diversity index 1.63 (±0.23)-0.33 (±0.09), the evenness index 0.79 (±0.06)-0.24 (±0.07) and the richness index 0.67 (±0.14)-1.80(±0.16). According to the analysis of the tolerance guilds, the total individual number of sensitive species was higher than the intermediate and tolerant species. The insectivore species accounted for 65.09-98.56% of the total trophic guilds, which was the highest observed. The value of the QHEI (Qualitative habitat evaluation index) in the Brachymystax lenok tsinlingensis habitat was 119.5 (±0.5)-153.5 (±0.5), indicating an optimal-suboptimal condition. The FAI (Fish assessment index) stream health value was A to B in the study sites. Correlation analysis with FAI and various factors was conducted and a high correlation in QHEI, Brachymystax lenok tsinlingensis individuals, species, individuals, diversity, richness, sensitive species, carnivorous species, insectivorous species, and omnivorous species was found. The similarity analysis was divided into three groups from A to C, based on 56.9%.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.151-162
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• 2023

This study investigated the characteristics of fish communities and inhabiting status of the endangered species, Rhodeus pseudosericeus, in the Geumdang Stream in Korea from March to October 2021. A total of 1,698 fish in 5 families and 25 species were collected from 7 survey stations during the survey period. The dominant species was Zacco platypus (relative abundance, 46.5%), and the subdominant species was Squalidus gracilis majimae (16.7%), followed by Rhynchocypris oxycephalus (12.0%), Z. koreanus (5.7%), Pungtungia herzi (3.2%), R. pseudosericeus (2.0%), R. notatus (1.9%), and Acheilognathus rhombeus (1.8%). Nine Korean endemic species (36.0%) were collected, including R. pseudosericeus, R. uyekii, Sarcocheilichthys variegatus wakiyae, Microphysogobio yaluensis, S. gracilis majimae, Z. koreanus, Cobitis nalbanti, Iksookimia koreensis, and Odontobutis interrupta. An exotic species, Micropterus salmoides, designated as an invasive alien species (IAS), was collected downstream. The investigation of the habitat patterns of the endangered species (class II), Rhodeus pseudosericeus, showed a habitat range of about 6 to 7 km in the middle of Geumdang Stream (RP-1 to RP-4), and this species inhabited the edge with water depths of 0.3 through 1.0 m with slow water flow and many aquatic plants. According to the community analysis results, the overall dominance and evenness indexes were low, while diversity and richness indexes were high, and the cluster structure was largely divided into upstream and middle-downstream areas. The river health (fish assessment index) evaluated using fish was assessed as good (3 stations), normal (3 stations), and bad (1 station), and water quality was evaluated as good both upstream and downstream. Compared to previous studies, the number of species was relatively similar, and among the species that appeared in the past, 13 species did not appear in this survey, while 6 species appeared for the first time in this survey. Disturbance factors included river construction, many weirs, and the appearance of the ecosystem-disturbing species, M. salmoides. Since Geumdang Strem has high conservation value because it is home to many species in the Acheilognathinae subfamily, including the endangered species R. pseudosericeus, continuous attention and systematic conservation measures are required.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.356-368
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• 2010

In this study, we applied approach of integrative star-plot area (SPA), chemical water quality and habitat conditions (QHEI) to diagnoze ecological conditions at the eight sampling sites of Sapkyo Stream. These outcomes were compared with biological health based on the Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) using fish assemblage. And then, we evaluated the integrative ecological health condition using the star-plot method. This approach based on the sum of all the star-plot areas over these water and habitat characteristics. It was developed to reflect an integrative assessment of the ecological health in the stream. The biological health, based on the model values of IBI indicating "fair-poor" condition according to the criteria. Physical habitat health, based on the QHEI, averaged 123 indicating a "good-fair" condition. Also, chemical health, based on simply BOD values indicating "poor grade" according to the criteria of the Ministry of Environment Korea (MEK). The SPA indicating that 50% of the all was impaired condition and the most sampling sites were downstream sites influenced by the point and non-point sources. Overall our results suggest that the ecological health impact was a combined effect of eutrophication and habitat degradations in the stream. The approach of SPA can be used as a tool to evaluate the integrative health of stream environment and to identify possible causes of observed effects.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.215-226
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• 2000

We evaluated the aquatic ecosystem of Keum-Ho River through applications of the Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) using fish assemblages and Qualitative Habitat Evaluation Index (QHEI) during June-November 1999. Overall IBI values ranged from 13 to 37 with mean of 23 (n=25, Std. error= 1.16), indicating a "Poor" or "Very Poor" condition according to the criteria of Karr (1981) and U.S. EPA (1993). The values of mean IBI declined at the rate of $0.22km^{-1}$(($r^2$=0.91, p< 0.05) along the longitudinal distance from the headwaters to the down-river. Reduced IBI values at down-river (St. 4 and 5) were attributed to the decreases in riffle benthic species and the relative abundance of insectivore and increases in tolerant species, anormalies and exotic species. Spatial pattern in IBI agreed with QHEI values, which showed a linear relation ($r^2$=0.998, p< 0.001) with mean number of species. Field measurements of conductivity and pH, indicators for variation of conservative ions, showed that the river water was diluted up to 30% by summer precipitation and surface run-off from the watershed, resulting in physical and chemical instability during the monsoon. For these reasons, average IBI values during monsoon and postmonsoon decreased more than 20% compared to pre -monsoon. Before the perturbation of the system (i.e., pre-monsoon), values of QHEI were inversely correlated (r=-0.99, p< 0.0001) with realtive abundance of native omnivore and were positively correlated (r=0.87, p=0.05) with relative abundance of native carnivore. These results indicate that spatial degradation of habitat quality modified the species richness and trophic structure, producing decreased IBI values. (Biological integrity, IBI, Monsoon, Habitat, River, Korea)bitat, River, Korea)