• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.303-319
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• 2023

Pitfall traps that use ethylene glycol as a preservative solution are commonly used in arthropod research. However, a recent surge in cases involving damage to these traps by roe deer or wild boars owing to the sweet taste of ethylene glycol has prompted the addition of quinone sulfate, a substance with a pungent taste, to deter such wildlife interference. This study aimed to assess the effects of quinone sulfate on arthropods collected from pitfall traps containing ethylene glycol. We strategically positioned 50 traps using ethylene glycol alone and 50 traps containing a small amount of quinone sulfate mixed with ethylene glycol in a grid pattern for systematic sampling at the Gwangneung Forest long-term ecological research (LTER) site. Traps were collected 10 days later. The results revealed a notable effect on ants when quinone sulfate was introduced. Specifically, it decreased the number of ants. In a species-specific analysis of ants, only Nylanderia flavipes showed a significant decline in response to quinone sulfate, whereas other ant species remained unaffected. Additionally, among the arthropod samples obtained in this survey, we identified species or morpho-species of spiders, beetles, and ants and assessed species diversity. Consequently, the utilization of quinone sulfate should be undertaken judiciously, taking into account the specific species composition and environmental characteristics of the monitoring site. Our study also highlighted the significant response of various arthropod groups to variations in leaf litter depth, underscoring the crucial role of the leaf litter layer in providing sustenance and shelter for ground-foraging arthropods. Furthermore, we have compiled comprehensive species lists of both spiders and ants in Gwangneung forest by amalgamating data from this investigation with findings from previous studies.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.121-126
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• 2007

We monitored gold-spotted pond frog (Rana chosenica) populations near the Korea National University of Education in Chungbuk, Korea, from 19 May to 8 August, 2006 to examine the spatial distribution of populations in local areas and to investigate patterns of migration of adult gold-spotted pond frogs from terrestrial hibernation sites to breeding sites, We captured individuals from the largest population using a drift fence with 22 pitfall traps surrounding the breeding site. A total of 22 individuals (19 males and 3 females) were captured between 23 May and 15 June. No peak in breeding migration was detected, but the onset of the breeding migration may correspond with increased humidity. Male body weights were negatively correlated with sampling dates. Seven of 22 individuals were captured at the 4th pitfall trap, which was placed between two culverts. The capture rate per pitfall trap was higher in traps close to the rice field banks (1.44, traps $1{\sim}9$) than in traps facing hilly land (0.33, traps $13{\sim}18$). Comparative data from the Korean frog (Rana coreana), a sympatric species in the study area, were also collected and compared with those of the gold-spotted pond frog.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.61-70
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• 2021

The effects of forest type and fragmentation of forests by a road on the beetle community were investigated in the Gwangneung Forest, South Korea. Beetles were collected monthly using pitfall traps and by sweeping at 16 sites (eight in coniferous forests and eight in deciduous forests) for one year from April 1993 to April 1994, excluding winter. A total of 17,616 beetles belonging to 271 species from 39 families were collected. Among them, Synuchus cycloderus was the dominant species, with 14,060 individuals accounting for 80% of the total population. The influence of forest type (coniferous and deciduous) or sampling region (fragmented by a road) on species richness(number of species) was observed. We found that species richness was substantially different depending on the sampling method and taxa used. Beetles collected using pitfall traps responded more sensitively to habitat types than those collected by sweeping. Four dominant families differently responded to forest fragmentation and forest types. Carabidae was influenced by forest fragmentation, whereas Staphylinidae and Curculionidae were influenced by forest types. Chrysomelidae was not influenced.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.32-40
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• 2024

The purpose of this study is to collect basic information about Narrow-mouthed Toad (Kaloula borealis) by analyzing the morphological characteristics of Narrow-mouthed Toad (Kaloula borealis) caught in pitfall traps. The study site is in Godeok-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, and a total of 1,063 individuals were captured using pitfall traps for a total of four years from July 2016 to November 2020. Narrow-mouthed Toad (Kaloula borealis) were classified into adult and immature individuals based on length (SVL), and differences in sex ratio and shape were confirmed for adults. As a result, all adult males had a pair of white bands observed in the abdomen, and females had eggs identified in the abdomen. Through previous studies, a pair of white bands on the abdomen were determined to be male gonads, and were also confirmed in some immature individuals. The sex of the Narrow-mouthed Toad (Kaloula borealis) could be distinguished by the presence or absence of a pair of white bands located on the abdomen, and it is believed that this can be used as a sex classification method that can be confirmed in the field. During the study period, the adult sex ratio was confirmed to be 697 male (65.57%) and 366 female (34.43%), with more males. It is expected that this method of sex ratio and male/female sex ratio will be used not only for species restoration and monitoring of migration and alternative habitats due to development, but also as basic data for various ecological studies.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.71-88
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• 2005

This study has been monthly carried out to investigate the community structure and seasonal variations of Coleoptera from April to September, 2004 in Mt. Yeonyeop area, Gangwon-do, Korea. A total of 3053 individuals belonging to 358 species in 49 families have been collected in the studied area by light trap, pitfall trap and sweeping methods. The abundant families, based on the number of species, were Carabidae (50 species), Chrysomelidae (40 species) and Curculionidae (40 species). The number of species were highest at site 4, located in low altitude and contained stream. The number of individuals were highest at site 2, because many beetles were attracted by pitfall traps. The total number of species and individuals was highest in July. Nicrophorus (Nicrophorus) quadripunctatus (13.00%) was a dominant species and Synuchus (Synuchus) cycloderus (7.17%) was sub dominant species. Especially Damaster mirabilissimus mirabilissimus, a protected species by government, was collected in May.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.251-258
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• 1997

Few attempts have been made to discover the ecological function of coarse woody debris (CWD) despite its importance to small mammal population. Twenty-five pitfall traps and a hundred live traps were placed in three sites with high amounts of CWD and three sites with low amounts of CWD. Eleven species were caught, and Peromyscus maniculatus was the most abundant (45.6%, n=605). Among 11 speices, abundance of Tamias townsendii and Clethronomys gapperi were higher in sites with high amounts of CWD than in sites with low amounts of CWD. Home range size was larger in breeding season than in non-breeding season indicating mating search. Resident time of Peromyscus maniculatus was longer in sites with high amounts of CWD implying better stability in population. The increasing amount of coarse woody debris (CWD) enhanced the habitat use by small mammals, and animals in high amounts of CWD were more abundant and stable in population fluctuation. This study, therefore, concludes that CWD is a critical habitat element for small mammals in forest ecosystem.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.151-160
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• 2019

The study of spiders that function as predators in agroecosystem can broaden the understanding of agroecosystems. This study investigated the effect of heterogeneity at different spatial scales on richness and abundance of spiders in upland and paddy fields. We collected 48 samples using pitfall traps at upland and paddy fields, respectively. The total species richness of spiders estimated by sample- and coverage-based rarefaction and extrapolation curves. The total species richness was high in the upland fields at the total study sites, whereas the average species richness per study site was high in the paddy fields. We confirmed that the diversity enhancement of spiders was influenced by the structural complexity of habitat at field-scale, and crop diversity at broader scale.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.67-72
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• 2012

This study was conducted to evaluate the scouting methods for larva and adults of the alfalfa weevil, $Hypera$ $postica$ Gyllenhal on Chinese milkvetch, $Astragalus$ $sinicus$ L. in the field. Three sampling methods, shake-bucket, shake-picking, and a sweeping net were evaluated for collecting alfalfa weevil larvae. We found significant differences among scouting methods and date in all survey fields. Sweep-net sampling was less able to detect small larvae than large larvae, which were not detected until early April whereas the shake-bucket, and shake-picking methods efficiently collected larvae from middle March. A Pitfall trap with three different baits - no bait, kidney bean seeds and sprouting kidney beans were compared for collection efficiency of alfalfa weevil adults. Collection efficiencies were significantly different by bait(p<0.018). Traps baited with sprouting kidney beans were the most efficient for collecting the alfalfa weevil. The number of alfalfa weevil caught was not significantly different between kidney bean seed and no bait in the pitfall trap. Therefore, the shake-bucket method for larvae and a pitfall trap baited with sprouting kidney beans for adults are recommended for scouting of the alfalfa weevil in a Chinese milkvetch field.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.684-693
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• 2016

Daemyung retarding basin located near the confluence floodplain of the Nakdong and Kumho River is a large spawning site for the endangered Kaloula borealis, and needs for protecting the habitat of the endangered species are increasing. However, scientific studies are rarely conducted on the population characteristics and ecological knowledge on the species in the basin. This paper aims to estimate the population size and spatial distribution of the species that inhabited at the Daemyung retarding basin, using the capture-recapture method. Also, pitfall traps were installed in each habitat types classified with micro-topographic features, slope aspects, and vegetation communities to identify the spatial distribution characteristics of the Kaloula borealis of each habitat in the retarding basin. Field survey on the species was conducted from May 2013 to October 2014, showing that the species emerged in May, became more active during July and August and started to hibernate at the end of October. Using capture-recapture method, the first survey was carried out from July to August, 2014. Ninety-eight toads were captured, marked, and released back into the site. In the second survey, 68 toads including 5 marked toads of the previous survey were captured. Based on these two-sample surveys, around 535-2,131 individual toads are estimated to inhabit the Daemyung retarding basin. Fifty-seven pitfall traps were installed in four habitat types: mounded and vegetated flatland, lowland swamps, and slope areas of both the southern and western parts of the basin in order to delineate spatial abundance of the endangered Kaloula borealis during the rainy season when the species is actively spawning. Pitfall traps at the spatially explicit array indicated that the species gradually move to the slope areas near the Daemyung stream, showing high occurrence density of the Kaloula borealis compared to the lowland swamps after the spawning season. The emergence of Kaloula borealis in the lowland swamps appeared to be comparatively higher during the spawning season. However, after the spawning season the toads species rapidly moved into the neighboring land of relatively high elevation such as the slope area towards the Dalsung protected wetlands and Daemyung River. These results are closely related to the migration patterns that toads tend to return to the sheltering sites and/or hibernating grounds after the spawning season. Also, the Kaloula borealis moved to the nearest high-level vegetated areas as the lowland swamps of their spawning grounds deteriorated with the expansion of permanent ponds due to the rise in the groundwater level.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.8-14
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• 2020

This study was carried out to compare the Snout-vent length (SVL) and the biomass for the endangered species II, narrow-mouthed toad (Kaloula borealis), at the three different latitude sites (Seoul, Nonsan, Busan) in Korea. For the narrow-mouthed toad study, pitfall traps and inducement traps were used to catch the species, and environmental factors (temperature, precipitation, humidity) were compared by region. As a result of this study, each of the male narrow-mouthed toads' SVL and biomass in Busan was 41.6±0.39mm, and 11.3±0.17g, which showed that it was the biggest and heaviest among the three regions. For Seoul and Nonsan, each of the SVL of the female narrow-mouthed toad was 36.6±2.03mm, 36.6±1.76mm, and the biomass was 8.1±0.55g, 8.2±0.91g, which showed that there was no significant difference between Seoul and Nonsan. Each of the female narrow-mouthed frogs' SVL and biomass in Busan was 44.7±0.35mm, 13.1±0.18g, which was also biggest but showed no significant difference in biomass by region. Concluding, this showed that the female narrow-mouthed toad in Busan is larger and heavier than those of other regions. We hope this study will be a standard for the future amphibian research with comparing the SVL and biomass for the endangered species II, narrow-mouthed toad. It is expected that if this kind of study keeps for long, it will be a basis for understanding changes in biomass of amphibian species due to climate change.