Global warming has a major impact on the Earth’s precipitation and temperature fluctuations, and significantly affects the habitats and biodiversity of many species. Although the number of alien plants newly introduced in South Korea has recently increased due to the increasing frequency of international exchanges and climate change, studies on how climate change affects the distribution of these alien plants are lacking. This study predicts changes in the distribution of suitable habitats according to RCPs climate change scenarios using the current distribution of the invasive alien plant Conyza sumatrensis and bioclimatic variables. C. sumatrensis has a limited distribution in the southern part of South Korea. Isothermality (bio03), the max temperature of the warmest month (bio05), and the mean temperature of the driest quarter (bio09) were found to influence the distribution of C. sumatrensis. In the future, the suitable habitat for C. sumatrensis is projected to increase under RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 climate change scenarios. Changes in the distribution of alien plants can have a significant impact on the survival of native plants and cause ecosystem disturbance. Therefore, studies on changing distribution of invasive species according to climate change scenarios can provide useful information required to plan conservation strategies and restoration plans for various ecosystems.
This study aimed to investigate the flora of Jinjosan Mt. (Uljin-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do). The vascular plants were surveyed 9 times between March 2019 and April 2020. The results of this survey revealed a total of 414 taxa comprising of 87 families, 274 genera, 365 species, 12 subspecies, 32 varieties, and 5 forms. Among them, 9 taxa were Korean endemic plants and 5 taxa were rare plants of Korea. In addition, the specific plants by floristic region were 66 taxa including 1 taxon of grade IV, 18 taxa of grade III, 24 taxa of grade II, and 23 taxa of grade I. Additionally, eight taxa were classified as plants adaptable to climate change. Thirty-one taxa were of alien plants and three taxa were of ecosystem disturbance species, which were also investigated. The percentage of naturalized plants species and the urbanization index were estimated to be 7.5% and 5.0%, respectively. Our results provide basic data on vascular plants flora, and will guide the conservation processes of plant resources such as plant diversity and distributional changes in Jinjosan Mt.
In this study, trends in research methods and topics of seabird and marine fish migration were examined. Based on the framework of existing animal migration studies, future research directions were proposed in relation to the migration of seabirds and fish. In terms of research methodology, with the development of science and technology, tracking techniques using radio telemetry, acoustic telemetry, RFID (radiofrequency identification), satellite tracking, and geolocators are widely used to study seabird and fish migration. Research is also conducted indirectly through a population survey and the analysis of substances in the body. Research contents are largely classified into extrinsic factors that affect migration (such as environmental variables and interspecific competition), intrinsic factors such as hormones, anthropogenic activities including fishery and offshore wind farm, and the effect of global climate change. In future studies, physiological factors that influence or cause migration and dispersal should be identified concerning intrinsic factors. For the analysis of migration ability, it is necessary to study effects of changes in the magnetic field on the migration ability of seabirds and fish, interspecific differences in spatiotemporal migration ability, and factors that influence the migration success rate. Regarding extrinsic factors, research studies on effects of anthropogenic disturbances such as fishery and offshore wind farm and global climate change on the migration and dispersal patterns of marine animals are needed. Finally, integrated studies on the migration of seabirds and fish directly or indirectly affecting each other in various ecological aspects are required.
We conducted a field survey from 2018 to 2020 to analyze the spatial distribution of phytoplankton communities at 13 stations in the East Sea. The diatom Chaetoceros curvisetus appeared as the dominant species in winter, and small flagellates less than 20 μm prevailed in all seasons except winter. The seasonal average range of the micro (>20 μm), nano (20 μm≥Chl-a>3 μm), and picophytoplankton (≤3 μm) was 20.6-26.2%, 27.1-35.9%, and 40.8-49.0%, respectively. The composition ratio of nano and picophytoplankton was high at the surface mixed layer from spring to autumn when the water columns were strongly stratified. Especially, the stability of the water mass was increased when the summer surface water temperature was higher than that of the previous year. As a result, the nutrient inflow from the lower layer to the surface was reduced as the ocean stratification layer was strengthened. Therefore, the composition ratio of nano and picophytoplankton was the highest at 77.9% at the surface mixed layer. In conclusion, the structure of the phytoplankton community in the East Sea has been miniaturized, which is expected to form a complex microbial food web structure and lower the carbon transfer rate to the upper consumer stage.
A survey was conducted to analyze seasonal dynamics of the phytoplankton community at 22 stations on the surface and bottom layers in the Anma Islands of Yeonggwang (AIY) in the southern West Sea, Korea from the spring of 2020 to the winter of 2021, using a marine survey vessel Ed Ocean. Based on the survey results, there were 87 phytoplankton species in 52 genera, diatoms accounted for 67.8%, dinoflagellates 26.5%, silicoflagellates 3.5%, and cryptomonads and euglenoids accounted for 1.1% each. By season, it was simple in spring and relatively varied in winter. The phytoplankton standing crop on the surface was low (28.8±30.1 cells mL-1) in summer and high (87.0±65.1 cells mL-1) in spring. In the phytoplankton community, diatoms showed a high share (over 80%) throughout the year, and Skeletonema costatum-ls was the dominant species with a dominance of more than 60% in spring and winter, and 34.6% and 24.2% in summer and autumn, respectively. The diversity expressing the characteristics of the community structure was high (2.79±0.45) in autumn and low (1.82±0.18) in spring, unlike the phytoplankton standing crop. However, the dominance was high at (0.86±0.08) in spring and low (0.44±0.13) in autumn. Based on the results of principal component analysis (PCA) using environmental and phytoplankton-related factors, it was estimated that the biological oceanographic environmental characteristics seen through the phytoplankton community in the AIY were dominated by nutrients supplied from open seawater and surface sediments by seawater mixing, such as tidal mixing.
In this study, the community structure of marine benthic invertebrates was examined to evaluate the differences between the west, south, and east coasts of Korea and to identify the indicator species representing each region. Acrylic attachment plate sets were installed in Jeongok, Mokpo, Tongyeong, Yangpo, and Gangreung, and the invertebrate fauna thus captured were identified. Monitoring was performed in each area from March 2017 to May 2018. Water depth, temperature, and salinity at each location were measured to determine the potential influence of abiotic factors on the community structure. As a result, the mean depth of plates installed and the water temperature were significantly different in each area. A total of 32 invertebrate species were identified in all localities, and the most significant difference in the species compositions was found between Mokpo and Gangreung. The community structure differed significantly with a change in the plate depth, and a larger number of indicator species appeared on shallower plates. Finally, we determined the community structure of benthic invertebrates in different geographical regions of the Korean ocean by characterizing the dominant invertebrate taxa and the indicator species at each site.
Vegetation is the basis for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. In the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which is the most direct and efficient policy measure to prevent degradation of nature, vegetation-related assessment has limitations as it is not based on quantitative and scientific methods. In addition, it focuses on the presence of protected species; hence, it does not take into account the role of vegetation as a habitat on a wide-area scale. As a way to overcome these limitations, this study aims to contribute to the quantification and advancement of future EIA on vegetation. Through the review of previous studies, core areas, connectivity, and vegetation condition were derived as the items to be dealt within the macroscopic aspect of vegetation impact assessment. Each item was spatially constructed using land cover maps and satellite imageries, and time series change analysis was performed. As a result, it was found that vegetation has been continuously deteriorating due to development in all aspects, and in particular, development adversely affects not only the inside of the project site but also the surrounding area. Although this study suggested the direction for improvement of the EIA in the vegetation sector based on data analysis, a more specific methodology needs to be established in order to apply it to the actual EIA process. By actively utilizing various environmental spatial data, the impact of the development on the natural ecosystem can be minimized.
To assess the influence of environmental factors on the phytoplankton community structure and total phytoplankton biomass during four seasons in 2014, we investigated the abiotic and biotic factors at 25 stations in the Busan coastal region. The phytoplankton community and total phytoplankton biomass were strongly dependent on the discharge from the Nakdong River, and the high density of phytoplankton was related with the introduction of the Tsushima Warm Current (TWC), particularly in the thermohaline fronts of the fall season. The relationship between the salinity and nutrient (Dissolved inorganic nitrogen=DIN: R 2=0.72, p<0.001 and Dissolved inorganic silicon=DSi: R 2=0.78, p<0.001) highly correlated with the river discharge, implying that those nutrients have played a crucial role in the growth of diatom and cryptophyta. The total phytoplankton biomass was highest in the summer followed by autumn, spring, and winter. Diatom and cryptophyta species were dominant species during the four seasons. Additionally, there were strong positive correlations between Chlorophyll a and total phytoplankton biomass (R 2=0.84, p<0.001), cryptophyta (R 2=0.76, p<0.001) and diatom (R 2=0.50, p<0.001), respectively. In particular, we found that there were significant differences in the nutrients, phytoplankton community compositions, and total phytoplankton biomass between the inner and the outer coastal region of Busan, depending on the amount of river discharge from the Nakdong River, particularly during rainy seasons. Therefore, the seasonal change of TWC and river discharge from the Nakdong River serve an important role in determining phytoplankton population dynamics in the Busan coastal region.