Drought is one of important environmental stress for plant. Drought has deleterious effect to plant growth including maize (Zea mays L.) such as vegetative and/or reproductive growth, root extension, photosynthesis efficiency, flowering, anthesis-silking interval (ASI), fertilization, and grain filling. In this study, we screened drought tolerant maize in 21 cultivars from different sources, sixteen NAM parent lines (B73, CML103, CML228, CML247, CML277, CML322, CML333, CML69, Ki11, Ki3, Ky21, M37W, Mo18w, NC350, Oh43 and Tx303), four Korean hybrids (Cheongdaok, Gangdaok, Kwangpyeongok and Pyeonganok) and one Southeast Asian genotype (DK9955). Drought stress (DS) index was evaluated with leaf rolling score at seedling stage and ASI at silking date. The leaf rolling scoring of CML228, DK9955 and Ki11 were determined 1.28, 1.85, 1.86, respectively. However, M37W, Kwangpyeongok, B73 and NC350 were determined over the 3. ASI analysis revealed that CML228, CML103, Cheongdaok, NC350, B73, CML322, Kwangpyeongok and Ki11 are represented less than 5 days under DS and less than 3 days of difference between DS and well-watered (WW), but CML69, Ki3, Pyeonganok, M37W, Mo18w and Gangdaok were represented more than 10 days under DS and more than 8 days of difference between DS and WW. Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS) analysis determined CML228, Ki11, and CML322 were regarded as drought tolerance cultivars. Eventually, Ki11 showed genetic similarity with Korean cultivars by QTL analysis and MDS analysis. Ki11 has a potential for development of drought tolerance maize with Korean cultivars.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the response of the soil mesofauna and ground-dwelling arthropods to vegetation structure and composition in a mountain pasture. The pasture mainly comprised five types of plant communities; Agrostis alba - Phleum pratense community, Poa pratensis community, Festuca ovina community, Rumex acetosella community, and the shrub assemblage comprised Spiraea miyabei-Spiraea salicifolia community. Soil chemical properties including the pH, EC and nutrient levels were influenced by plant communities. Plant-specific responses were observed for bacteria-feeding and plant-feeding soil nematodes. Collembola and Oribatida having the same feeding habit were influenced differently by plants. nMDS showed that the community of ground-dwelling arthropods were separated by vegetation types. Species numbers of arthropods were different among different plant communities. Our results indicate that vegetation structure and composition can influence both abundance of diversity of terrestrial fauna.
This study was conducted to predict the changes of potential distribution for invasive alien plant, Amaranthus viridis in Korea. The habitats of A. viridis were roadside, bare ground, farm area, and pasture, where the interference by human was severe. We used maximum entropy modeling (MaxEnt) for analyzing the environmental influences on A. viridis distribution and projecting on two different representative concentration pathways (RCP) scenarios, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5. The results of our study indicated annual mean temperature, elevation and precipitation of coldest month had higher contribution for A. viridis potential distribution. Projected potential distribution of A. viridis will be increased by 110% on RCP 4.5, 470% on RCP 8.5.
The objective of the study was to investigate vascular plants of Mueuido in Incheon from April to October, 2011. The investigation was carried out for mountains (Mt. Horyonggok and Mt. Guksa), coastal areas and annexed islands (Silmido and Somueuido). Vascular plants were found to have 338 taxa, including 90 families, 235 genera, 297 species, 5 subspecies, 32 varieties and 4 forms. Rare and endangered plants designated by Korea Forest Service had 5 taxa including Utricularia bifida, U. vulgaris var. japonica, U. racemosa, Ottelia alismoides, and Arisaema heterophyllum. The floristic regional indicator plants found in this area had 3 taxa of grade V and 5 taxa of grade III. Naturalized plants consisted of 20 taxa that made up 8.3% of the total vascular plants in this area.
Objective of this study was to evaluate the carbon budget on 40 years old pear orchard at Naju. For carbon budget assessment, we measured the soil respiration, net ecosystem productivity of herbs, pear biomass and net ecosystem exchange. In 2015, pear orchard released about 25.6 ton CO2 ha-1 by soil respiration. And 27.9 ton CO2 ha-1 was sequestrated by biomass growth. Also about 12.6 ton CO2 ha-1 was stored at pruning branches and about 5.2 ton CO2 ha-1 for photosynthesis of herbs. As a result, 25.6 ton of CO2 per ha is annually released to atmosphere. At the same time about 45.7 ton of CO2 was sequestrated from atmosphere. When it sum up the amount of CO2 release and sequestration, approximately 20.1 ton CO2 ha-1 was sequestrated by pear orchard in 2015, and it showed no significant differences with net ecosystem exchanges (17.8 ton CO2 ha-1 yr-1) by eddy covariance method with the same period. Continuous research using various techniques will help the understanding of CO2 dynamics in agroecosystem and it can be able to present a new methodology for assessment of carbon budget in woody crop field. Futhermore, it is expected that the this study can be used as the basic data to be recognized as a carbon sink.
The objective of this study was to determine the growth and light utilization efficiency of garden plants in shade area through chlorophyll fluorescence reaction analysis. Ten garden plants was grown for 75 days under 50% and 80% shading conditions. Under shading, ET2O/RC, the fluorescence parameter related to electron-transport in photosystem II, was effectively enhanced. However, the electron transport flux until PSI acceptors per reaction center (RE1O/RC) was reduced. These changes in photochemical parameters evoked a decrease in performance index (PI) and driving force (DF) of electron transport flux. In addition, some photochemical parameters such as FV, FV/FO, RE1O/RC, ET2O/RC, PITOTAL ABS, and DFTOTAL ABS were found to be important for shade tolerance. Three species (Pachysandra terminalis Siebold & Zucc, Physostegia virginiana L., and Carex maculata Bott) were found to be shade tolerant. Based on these results, shading factor index (SFI) deduced from photochemical parameters is useful for evaluating of shading stress of garden plants.
Changes in land use and increase in urban energy consumption influence urban life. This study analyzed the characteristics and patterns of urban heat and presents management schemes to generate a comfortable and sustainable urban environment. The study aimed to demonstrate the positive effects of artificial ground greening on improving the microclimate through evapotranspiration using perennial herbs. We have designed a chamber that could control constant temperature and humidity, measure temperature reductions in each plant and changes in sensible heat and latent heat. This study identified Sedum kamtschaticum as the most effective plant in controlling temperature. At 22℃, 3.2℃ temperature reduction was observed, whereas four other plants showed a 1.5℃ reduction. At 25℃, 2.0℃ temperature reduction was observed. On the other hand, the use of Sedum sarmentosum resulted in the lowest effect. Zoysia japonica is the most commonly used ground covering plant, although the temperature reduction of Lysimachia nummularia was more effective at high temperature conditions. Sensible heat and latent heat were calculated to evaluate the thermal performance of energy. At a temperature >30℃, L. nummularia and S. sarmentosum emitted high latent heat. In this study, we analyzed the thermal performance of green roof perennial plants; in particular, we analyzed the evapotranspiration and temperature reduction of each plant. Since the substrate depth and types, plant species, and seasonal change may influence temperature reduction and latent heat of green roofs, further studies are necessary.
Bloom of small centric diatom Stephanodiscus is quite occasional in winter season in temperate freshwater ecosystems. It often leads to degradation of water quality and affects the quality of supplied drinking water. In a previous study, we have found that naphthoquinone (NQ) 4-6 derivate is an effective tool for efficient mitigation of natural S. hantzschii blooms. In the present research, polylactide (PLA) and agar foam were used as immobilized agent for NQ 4-6 to improve the efficiency of NQ 4-6 compound releasing process for its application under various field conditions. Mesocosm experiments at 10 ton scale suggested that the abundance of S. hantzschii was continuously increased in the control and upon treatment of the mesocosm with immobilized NQ 4-6 from PLA and agar foam. Their algicidal activities were 78.8% and 77.1%, respectively, on S. hantzschii after 10 days. In the mesocosm experiments, the dynamics of biotic (bacteria, HNFs, ciliates, zooplankton) and abiotic (water temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, nutrients) factors remained unaffected. They exhibited similar trends in the control and treatment groups. Therefore, the immobilized NQ 4-6 from PLA and agar foam has potential to be used as an alternative algicidal substance to effectively mitigate natural S. hantzschii blooms under various field conditions. In addition, it not only can be used to control S. hantzschii, but also is an effective technique. The immobilized NQ 4-6 showed stable controlled release in desired system.
This study described the spatial distributions of marine environmental factors such as water temperature, salinity, chlorophyll a concentration and turbidity, and characteristics of phytoplankton community such as species composition, standing crops and dominant species at 19 fishing ports around Jeju Island during the early summer of 2016. I analyzed bio-oceanographical characteristics using principal component analysis (PCA) of the environmental factors and biological parameters. Water temperature, salinity, chlorophyll a and turbidity ranged from 17.6 to 20.7℃, from 26.19 to 32.33 psu, from 0.76 to 7.13 μg L-1, and from 0.51 to 14.49 FTU, respectively. A total of 51 species of phytoplankton belonging to 35 genera were identified. In particular, diatoms and dinoflagellates accounted for more than 56.8% and 27.4% of all the species, respectively. Moreover, the number of phytoplankton species was controlled by salinity. Phytoplankton cell density ranged from 2.9 cells mL-1 to 185.9 cells mL-1. The dominant species were Navicula spp. Stephanopyxis turris, Eutreptiella gymnastica and Mesodinium rubrum. Environmental factors and the phytoplankton community varied greatly between sampling sites. According to PCA, the biological oceanographic characteristics of the around Jeju Island were characterized by meteorological factors such as air temperature, precipitation and discharge of ground water during early summer.
One of the issues currently facing nuclear power plants is how to store spent nuclear waste materials which are contaminated with radionuclides such as 134Cs, 135Cs, and 137Cs. Bioremediation processes may offer a potent method of cleaning up radioactive cesium. However, there have only been limited reports on Cs+ tolerant bacteria. In this study, we report the isolation and identification of Cs+ tolerant bacteria in environmental soil and sediment. The resistant Cs+ isolates were screened from enrichment cultures in R2A medium supplemented with 100 mM CsCl for 72 h, followed by microbial community analysis based on sequencing analysis from 16S rRNA gene clone libraries (NCBI’s BlastN). The dominant Bacillus anthracis Roh-1 and B. cereus Roh-2 were successfully isolated from the cesium enrichment culture. Importantly, B. cereus Roh- 2 is resistant to 30% more Cs+ than is B. anthracis Roh-1 when treated with 50 mM CsCl. Growth experiments clearly demonstrated that the isolate had a higher tolerance to Cs+. In addition, we investigated the adsorption of 0.2 mg L-1 Cs+ using B. anthracis Roh-1. The maximum Cs+ biosorption capacity of B. anthracis Roh-1 was 2.01 mg g-1 at pH 10. Thus, we show that Cs+ tolerant bacterial isolates could be used for bioremediation of contaminated environments.
Testate amoebae are useful organisms when evaluating the condition of freshwater ecosystems and wetland habitats. Herein, I report on seventeen unrecorded species of testate amoebae from Korea: Arcella arenaria, A. costata, A. hemisphaerica, Centropyxis constricta, C. discoides, C. spinosa, Difflugia amphora, D. globulosa, D. longicollis, D. penardi, Heleopera rosea, Hyalosphenia subflava, Nebela militaris, N. penardiana, Netzelia wailesi, Cyphoderia ampulla, and C. trochus.
This study was conducted to provide important basic information about effective management of the marine environment at major inflow streams in Lake Andong and Lake Imha. The investigation was conducted 8 times from May, 2015 (AD1, AD2, IH1, IH2) to September, 2016 (AD3, AD4, IH3, IH4), and 8 surveyed sites were selected at Lake Andong (4 sites) and Lake Imha (4 sites). The inquiry identified 114 species, 59,913.7 inds. m-2 in Lake Andong and 112 species, 39,038.4 inds. m-2 in Lake Imha. The results indicate that the number of species and individuals in Lake Andong is more than that in Lake Imha, because Lake Andong has a variety of riparian vegetation and a richness of organic materials. Community analysis at Lake Imha revealed a dominant index of 0.57 (±0.18), a diversity index of 2.87 (±0.31), an evenness index of 0.73 (±0.04), and a richness index of 4.17 (±0.71). The results of functional feeding group analysis showed that a high proportion of species and individuals are gathering collectors. The results of functional habitat group analysis showed that a high proportion of species and individuals are clingers. The result of a physico-chemical water assay and dissolved oxygen and electric conductivity tests revealed that these measures increased when the water temperature decreased. The result of Pearson’s correlation analysis by biological factors and physico-chemical factors showed that species and electric conductivity are highly correlated with one another. Major inflow streams of Lake Andong and Lake Imha were exposed to various point pollution sources and non-point pollution sources. This implies a necessity for continuous monitoring of the aquatic ecosystems in order to effect systematic water quality management of Lake Andong and Lake Imha.
In order to study the community structure and distribution pattern of macrobenthos in the subtidal area of Shia Sea between Haenam peninsula and Shinan-Jindo area at southwest coast of Korea, duplicate sediment samples were taken seasonally by van Veen grab (surface area, 0.1 m2) from 49 stations between November 2001 and August 2002. The surface sediment facies were muddy sandy gravel near Mokpo-Gu channel, gravel in the Myoungrang channel with high tidal currents, and sandy muddy in the southern Uido area. Ignition loss in the sediment ranged from 0.5 to 1.5% with a mean of 0.6%. A total of 271 taxa were collected with a mean density of 166 ind.m-2 and a mean biomass of 29.2 gm-2. Polychaetes were dominant faunal group in terms of species richness and abundance, accounting for 34% and 40% of total species number and abundance, respectively. Molluscs accounted for 44% of biomass. Bio-Env analysis revealed that sediment composition and ignition loss affected the spatial distribution of subtidal macrobenthic community in the study area. Major dominant species were Photis longicaudata, Septifer keenae, Maldane cristata, Lumbrineris longifolia, Heteromastus filiformis and Coptothyris grayi. Based on cluster analysis, four station groups were classified. They were associated with sediment types. Bivalve, Striarca symmetrica, polychaetes, Glycera chirori, Heteromastus filiformis and decapod Latreutes planirostris were major contributing fauna in station group A, B, C, and D, respectively. These results suggest that macrobenthic community of the Shia Sea is normally influenced by sediment type and related ignition loss.
To investigate the oviposition preference and development of azuki bean weevil (Callosobruchus chinensis L.), the following six different leguminous seeds were used in this study: red bean (Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi & Ohashi), black soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), seoritae (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), small black bean (Rhynchosia nulubilis) and kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris var. humilis Alef.). In the study of oviposition preference, the numbers of eggs per leguminous seed on red bean, black soybean, soybean, seoritae and small black bean were 1.23, 0.61, 0.69, 1.05 and 1.13, respectively. The maximum daily number of eggs was observed at 48 hours and the minimum was at 96 hours. According to each host leguminous seed, developmental time for each host seed was different. The shortest adult emergence time was on red bean (25.27 days). The other five leguminous seeds increased or doubled the adult emergence time. Adult emergence rates feeding on red bean, seoritae, black soybean, soybean, small black bean were 83.33%, 28.23%, 27.87%, 20.44%, and 11.59%, respectively. Emergence rate on red bean was four times higher than the rate on other seeds. The longevity of emerged female adults was almost all longer than that of males. The male adults weighed the lowest of feeding on small black bean. Female adults weighed the lowest of feeding on soybean. Adult weights were the heaviest for both males and females feeding on red bean. As a result, hosts of azuki bean weevil could decrease oviposition rate, emergence rate, adult longevity, and adult weight but increase emergence time. Especially in kidney bean, adult was not completely emerged. No eggs were laid. These results suggest that there might be emergence inhibitors in kidney bean. These imformation might be used to control damages caused by azuki bean weevils.
Effect of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Zn) on the survival and population growth rates (PGR) of marine rotifer, Brachionus plicatilis were examined. B. plicatilis were exposed to Cd, Cu and Zn for 24 h to determine their survival and 72 h to determine their PGR. Survival rates in the control groups were greater than 90%. They were decreased with increasing concentrations of Cd, Cu and Zn. Survival rates were reduced in a concentration-dependent manner. Significant reduction in survival rates after exposure to Cd, Cu and Zn at concentration greater than 40.00, 0.13 and 10.00 mg L-1, respectively. PGR in the control groups were greater than 0.50. They were decreased with increasing concentrations of heavy metals. PGR were reduced in a concentrationdependent manner. Significant reduction in PGR after exposure to Cd, Cu and Zn occurred at concentration greater than 12.5, 0.06 and 1.00 mg L-1, respectively. The order of heavy metal toxicity based on PGR was Cu>Zn>Cd, with EC50 (50% Effective Concentration) values of 0.12, 6.15 and 21.41 mg L-1, respectively. The lowest-observed-effective-concentrations (LOEC) of PGR after exposure to Cd, Cu and Zn were 12.50, 0.06 and 1.00 mg L-1, respectively. The No-observedeffective- concentrations (NOEC) of PGR after exposure to Cd, Cu and Zn were 6.25, 0.03 and 0.01 mg L-1, respectively, in marine ecosystems have toxic effects on PGR of B. plicatilis. These results suggest that the PGR of B. plicatilis are useful tool to assess the effect of heavy metals on primary consumers in marine natural ecosystems.
Waterbirds using rice fields has increased due to a decline of natural wetlands. The rice field is an essential habitat to supports the waterbird population. Although use of rice field by waterbirds has been widely documented, little information is available on distribution patterns of waterbirds under the pesticide use in rice fields. The current study conducted to understand the relationship between habitat use by waterbirds and pesticide applicatioins in rice fields. We monitored the distribution of waterbirds at Daeho reclaimed area in July 2013 to June 2014 and September 2014 to August 2015. As a results, three heron species (Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax, Eastern Cattle Egret Bubulcus coromandus and Intermediate Egret Egretta intermedia) are more sensitive to pesticides use than other waterbird species in rice fields. Future studies are necessary to explore the relationship between bird’s distribution and management practices including pesticide use at different spatiotemporal scales.
Much of the data used in the analysis of environmental ecological data is being obtained over time. If the number of time points is small, the data will not be given enough information, so repeated measurements or multiple survey points data should be used to perform a comprehensive analysis. The method used for that case is longitudinal data analysis or mixed model analysis. However, if the amount of information is sufficient due to the large number of time points, repetitive data are not needed and these data are analyzed using time series analysis technique. In particular, with a large number of data points in the current situation, when we want to predict how each variable affects each other, or what trends will be expected in the future, we should analyze the data using time series analysis techniques. In this study, we introduce univariate time series analysis, intervention time series model, transfer function model, and multivariate time series model and review research papers studied in Korea. We also introduce an error correction model, which can be used to analyze environmental ecological data.