This study analyzed the relationship between distribution of Bolboschoenus planiculmis which is main food source of swans (national monument species) with environmental factors, discharge, rainfall, and salinity in Eulsuk-do from 2020 to 2023. The distribution area of B. planiculmis in Eulsuk tidal flat was 103,672 m2 in 2020, 95,240 m2 in 2021, 88,163 m2 in 2022, and 110,879 m2 in 2023, and represents a sharp decrease compared to the 400,925 m2 area recorded in 2004. From 2020 to 2023, the growth densities of B. planiculmis were 243.6±12.5 m-2, 135.45±7.38 m-2, 51.10±2.54 m-2, and 238.20±16.36 m-2, respectively, and the biomass was 199.89±28.01 gDW m-2, 18.57±5.12 gDW m-2, 6.55±1.12 gDW m-2, and 153.53±25.43 gDW m-2 in 2020, 2023, 2021, and 2022, respectively. Based on discharge during May~July, which affects plant growth, the left gate discharge of the estuary barrage from 2020 to 2023 was 62,322 m3 sec-1, 33,329 m3 sec-1, 6,810 m3 sec-1, and 93,641 m3 sec-1, respectively; rainfall was 1,136 mm, 799 mm, 297 mm, and 993 mm, respectively; and average salinity was 14.7±9.4 psu, 21.1±4.7 psu, 26.1±2.7 psu, and 14.5± 11.1 psu, respectively. In 2022, cumulative rainfall (978 mm, about 70% of the 30-year average) and discharge (43,226 m3 sec-1) decreased sharply, resulting in the highest mean salinity (25.46 psu), and the distribution area, density, and biomass of the B. planiculmis decreased sharply. In 2023, there was a rise in discharge with an increase in rainfall, leading to a decrease in salinity. Consequently, this environmental change facilitated the recovery of B. planiculmis growth.

The predator-prey interaction in freshwater ecosystems is a crucial area in the ecological study field and one of example to find such interaction is to investigate stomach contents. However, traditional method through visual inspection often induce misidentification, as it depends critically on intactness of physically visible data. In this study, we utilized Next-Generations Sequencing (NGS) technology to test the applicability stomach content analysis and overcome such limitation. NGS was applied to analyze the stomach contents of the Hemibarbus labeo, Tachysurus fulvidraco, and Plecoglossus altivelis collected in the lower part of Nakdong River. As a result, T. fulvidraco had a higher number of Animalia operational taxonomic units (OTUs) intake rate than H. labeo. At the same time, P. altivelis had higher number of Plantae OTUs intake rate than T. fulvidraco and higher Protozoa OTUs intake rate than H. labeo respectively. Therefore, NGS technology application enable to overcome traditional method’s limitation and discover hidden interspecific interaction which can further be used in appropriate habitat assessment.

The research was based on long-term studies on the major physico-chemical and hydrological factors and zooplankton community dynamics in the Hwang River. We had 341 times survey and collected zooplankton samples in the Hwang River of mid-Nakdong River from 1995 to 2013. We identified 97 zooplankton species, including 77 rotifers, 16 cladocerans, and 4 copepods. The total zooplankton abundance and species diversity were shown distinctive temporal variation (ANOVA, p<0.001). Annual average of zooplankton population density was 58.4±3.2 ind L-1 (n=341) and the lowest was 17.0±3.8 ind L-1 (1996, n=20), while the highest was 151.5±32.3 ind L-1 (2010, n=22). For zooplankton, small rotifer groups (e.g., Keratella sp., Brachionus sp., Trichotria sp.) dominated the study site for 19 years survey. Statistical analysis revealed that there were positive relationships with SiO2 (p=0.002) and water level (p<0.001) for the high abundance of rotifer community. There were considerable variations both the total cladocerans population and the number of cladocerans’ species concerning annual precipitation. Despite the appearance of various zooplankton in the Hwang River, the mean population density remained low. Due to the lateral structures in the Nakdong River, the downstream basin of the Hwang River is inevitably affected. The zooplankton community in our study site is considered to be mainly influenced by external factors that can stably increase and maintain the volume of the water body and internal factors that induce an increase in food sources through the inflow of nutrients into the water body.

Anthropogenic disturbances on freshwater ecosystem are known to degrade biodiversity, especially on fish assemblage. In this study, we have conducted fish surveys to identify impact of a bridge construction on fish assemblages. A total of eight study sites were surveyed in the Danjang and the Dong Stream in southern part of South Korea from June to November in 2021. The fish samplings were carried out five times, using cast-nets (10×10 mm mesh size), scoop-nets (4×4 mm, 5×5 mm mesh size), set-nets (10×10 mm mesh size), and fish traps (3×3 mm mesh size), along with the Stream/River Ecosystem Survey and Health Assessment by the Ministry of Environment of Korea and basic water quality measurement. Also, we applied the species diversity index and length-weight relationship regressions on certain species to identify interspecific growth rate differences in accordance with study sites. As a result, a total of 782 individuals, 23 species and 10 families were collected. The dominant species was Zacco Koreanus and relative abundance was 50.89%. When applying the length-weight relationship regressions on certain species, the ‘b’ value for Z. Koreanus was lower at the downstream points than at the upstream points of the construction site. In addition, when comparing to the results of the past survey, relative density of demersal fish at the upstream and downstream points decreased from 26% to 1.4%, and from 18% to 6.3%, respectively. In conclusion, it is considered that bridge construction negatively affects the habitat of fishes, especially on demersal fishes. Therefore, appropriate conservation efforts such as installation of silt protector and sand sedimentation pond are needed to alleviate the disturbance in habitat such as occurrence of turbidity and destruction of micro-habitats.

본 연구는 낙동강지류인 밀양강에 소상한 연어를 대상으로 소상, 산란 분포를 최초로 파악하고 소상 한계선을 확인 하였다. 2020년 10월 25일부터 11월 28일까지 확인된 개체들 중, 사체는 전장을 측정하고 암-수 구별을 하였다. 조사 결과 총 40개체의 연어를 발견하였으며 이 중 사체는 25마리, 살아있는 개체는 15마리였다. 대부분 산란장으로 판단 되는 지점 인근 수변부에서 살아있는 개체와 사체가 발견되었다. 연어의 소상 한계선 파악의 경우 연어가 소상할 수 없는 형태의 보가 등장할 때까지 상류방향으로 이동하여 확인 하였으며, 밀양강 본류의 경우 예림교 기준 상류 13 km, 지천인 단장천의 경우 밀양강 합류부에서부터 12 km까지 연어의 소상이 가능할 것으로 확인하였다. 따라서 연어가 소상 하기 위한 보의 철거 및 어도설치와 같은 하천연결성 확보가 필요한 것으로 판단되며, 연어의 치어생존률을 높이기 위한 산란장 및 미소서식처 자연성 확보 방안이 필요할 것으로 판단된다.

본 연구에서는 영산강, 섬진강 유역에서 호소 간의 동물 플랑크톤의 군집구조 특성이 만수면적에 따라 분류된 소· 중·대형의 저수지에서 종 수 및 개체수가 유의한 차이를 보이는 것을 확인하였다. 윤충류보다 지각류에서 민감도가 높은 것을 확인하였으며, 특히 두 분류군 모두 양의 상관 관계를 나타냈지만, 지각류에서 조사지점이 늘어날수록 개체수 증가가 확연한 것을 알 수 있었다. 또한 네트워크 분석 개념을 활용한 고유벡터 중심성 및 그룹화 분석을 사용 하여 호소 간의 동물플랑크톤 군집구조를 비교했을 때, 만수면적에 따른 대·중·소형 호소 내에서도 지리적 특성과 미소환경 공간의 차이점을 구별할 수 있었다. 따라서 이러한 특성을 볼 때, 네트워크 분석은 담수 동물플랑크톤 군집구조 분석에 있어 만수면적 크기, 지리적 특성, 미소환경 특성을 반영할 수 있는 것으로 고려된다. 마지막으로, 네트워크 분석은 다양한 군집분석을 간소화하며 시각화를 통한 직관적 이해를 돕는 데 유용할 것이다.

The Wintering Waterbird Census of Korea was started in 1999 and monitors 200 major migratory sites in South Korea. Waterfowl counts have been undertaken for more than 20 years since; however, a limited number of studies have analyzed the temporal patterns of waterfowl population. In this study, we analyzed population size changes of wintering whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus) at 112 monitoring sites from 2001 to 2018. The average number of whooper swans was 4,296±42.66 and there was a trend for an increase in population size across the survey period. We found that the population in the Nakdong River Estuary, one of the major wintering sites over 18 years (26.22% of the national population), had rapidly decreased (- 0.77% per year). Conversely, the whooper swan population in the Junam Reservoir and Sihwa Lake increased (+1.64%, +0.54% per year, respectively). Estuaries showed the highest dominance of whooper swans among the five different habitat types, accounting for 32.13% of the population. Reservoir/lakes had 30.60% of the total population and reclaimed lakes (18.24%), river (13.11%), and coast (5.93%) followed. The annual distribution of the whooper swan population in South Korea has been affected by various habitat conditions resulting from human activities and urbanization. To better understand the complex factors that can cause rapid changes in wintering waterfowl populations, it is necessary to integrate the data from the bird census program with environmental conditions to conduct in-depth pattern analyses over longer time periods.

We analyzed research topics, temporal distribution of field sites, and researcher network of 1,508 limnology publications in the Korean Journal of Limnology (1968~2012) and the Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment (2013~2017). We found that water quality and sediment, phytoplankton, invertebrates, and fish were major subjects during the study periods. Survey of flora and fauna and physiological experiment of freshwater species were the largest subjects during 1970~80s, while other subjects including production, behavior, modeling, and ecological assessment have been rapidly increased since the 1990s. Most of the biological taxa equally studied lotic and lentic system, however, invertebrates and fish related studies more focused on the lotic system. Spatially, the field site of Korean limnology studies was found to be concentrated in main river channels runs through urban areas and artificial lakes than preserved natural areas. Freshwater system, located at the elevation range of 301~400m(upstream of main channels), had the lowest number of field sites. Collaboration among researchers and different institution types have been steadily increased and expanded as the number of publications increased.

In order to identify key nations and bird species of conservation concern we described multinational collaborations as defined using network analysis linked by birds that are found in all nations in the network. We used network analysis to assess the patterns in bird occurrence for 10,422 bird inventories from 244 countries and territories. Nations that are important in multinational collaborations for bird conservation were assessed using the centrality measures, closeness and betweenness centrality. Countries important for the multinational collaboration of bird conservation were examined based on their centrality measures, which included closeness and betweenness centralities. Comparatively, the co-occurrence network was divided into four groups that reveal different biogeographical structures. A group with higher closeness centrality included countries in southern Africa and had the potential to affect species in many other countries. Birds in countries in Asia, Australia and the South Pacific that are important to the cohesiveness of the global network had a higher score of betweenness centrality. Countries that had higher numbers of bird species and more extensively distributed bird species had higher centrality scores; in these countries, birds may act as excellent indicators of trends in the co-occurrence bird network. For effective bird conservation in the world, much stronger coordination among countries is required. Bird co-occurrence patterns can provide a suitable and powerful framework for understanding the complexity of co-occurrence patterns and consequences for multinational collaborations on bird conservation.

In order to consider application and evaluation of value and class of domestic wetland, we investigated 146 wetlands located Gyeongsangnam-do using Rapid Assessment Method (RAM). We utilized Self-Organizing-Map (SOM) to analysis relationship between evaluation index and land coverage ratio surrounding wetland. Among total 8 evaluation index, ‘Fish and herptile habitat’ and ‘Aesthetic value’ were higher, most of the wetlands evaluated as 2, 3 grade. Result of SOM analysis, ‘vegetation diversity and wild animals habitat’ is negatively related to the ‘Fish and herptile habitat’, because fishs were not prefer habitat excessively occupied by plant. However, high vegetation diversity can be support high score of ‘Aesthetic’ in wetland. Also, ‘Erosion control’ and ‘Flood storage and control’ were closely related, wetlands with high score of ‘Erosion control’ have high score of ‘Flood storage and control’. When applied RAM in domestic wetland, six out of 6 evaluation index induced biased results, the index of RAM need a little change as some new or modify evaluation index. Therefore, we consider to need adjustable, subdivide, and actualization of some evaluation index for application of RAM in domestic wetlands. Consequently, wetland assessment and class using RAM can be utilized as important indicate for conservation and management of wetland, and contributed greatly to maintain biodiversity include to endangered species by preserving remaining wetland.

In order to evaluate the role of macrophytes as refuge of zooplankton on physical distribution (i.e. summer rainfall), we investigated the environmental factors, macrophytes, and zooplankton in waterside zones (macrophytes zones) and open water zones of 17 wetlands from May and August, 2011. In this study, a total of 51 zooplankton species were identified, and Polyarthra sp. and Diaphanosoma brachyurum were found to be the most dominant species. Waterside area of each wetland were occupied by a total of 10 macrophyte species, species composition and biomass (dry weight) were different in the survey sites. Zooplankton was more abundant in waterside zone than open water zones lacking macrophytes (One-way ANOVA, df=2, F=27.1, P<0.05), in particular, waterside zone of 1, 8, 9, 10, and 11 wetland were supported by high zooplankton density after summer rainfall. This wetlands were developed by various macrophyte species than other wetland, and submerged plant commonly presented. Waterside zones with various macrophyte species provides complexity to the habitat structure, should be utilized as refuge to avoid disturbance such as summer rainfall. The results indicate that macrophytes are the key components to enhance bio-diversity include zooplankton, and the inclusion of diverse plant species in wetland construction or restoration schemes will result in ecologically healthy food webs.

We analyzed research trend and public perception related with tap water to identify major factors affecting low consumption of tap water. 805 research articles were collected for text mining analysis and 1,000 on-line questionnaires were surveyed to find social variables influencing tap water intake. Based on the word network analysis, research topics were divided into 4 major categories, 1) drinking water quality, 2) water fluoridation, 3) residual chlorine, and 4) micro-organism management. Compared with these major research topics, scientific studies of drinking behavior, or social perception were rather limited. 22.4% of total respondents used tap water as drinking water source, and only 1% drank tap water without further treatments (i.e. boiling, filtering). Experience of quality control report (B=0.392, p=0.046) and level of policy trust (B=1.002, p<0.0001) were influential factors on tap water drinking behavior. Age (B=0.020, p=0.002) and gender (B= - 1.843, p<0.0001) also showed significant difference. To increase the frequency of drinking the tap water by social members, the more scientific information of tap water quality and the water policy management should be clearly shared with social members.

We identified research trends for freshwater exotic species in South Korea using text mining methods in conjunction with bibliometric analysis. We searched scientific and common names of freshwater exotic species as searching keywords including 1 mammal species, 3 amphibian-reptile species, 11 fish species, 2 aquatic plant species. A total of 245 articles including research articles and abstracts of conference proceedings published by 56 academic societies and institutes were collected from scientific article databases. The search keywords used were the common names for the exotic species. The 20th century (1900’s) saw the number of articles increase; however, during the early 21st century (2000’s) the number of published articles decreased slowly. The number of articles focusing on physiological and embryological research was significantly greater than taxonomic and ecological studies. Rainbow trout and Nile tilapia were the main research topic, specifically physiological and embryological research associated with the aquaculture of these species. Ecological studies were only conducted on the distribution and effect of large-mouth bass and nutria. The ecological risk associated with freshwater exotic species has been expressed yet the scientific information might be insufficient to remove doubt about ecological issues as expressed by interested by individuals and policy makers due to bias in research topics with respect to freshwater exotic species. The research topics of freshwater exotic species would have to diversify to effectively manage freshwater exotic species.

River channel dredging and riparian development have been influenced morphology and quantity of natural river habitat. We compared distribution of riverside land and alluvial island in the Nakdong River with field survey and remote sensing analysis after the 4 Large River Project in South Korea. We digitized geomorphological elements, includes main channel, riverside land, and alluvial island by using georeferenced aerial photos taken in pre-dredging (2008) and post-dredging (2012) periods. Field survey was followed in 2012 for a ground truth of digitized boundaries and identification of newly constructed wetland types such as pond, channel, branch, and riverine type. We found that during the dredging period, riverside land and alluvial island were lost by 20.2% and 72.7%, respectively. Modification rate of riverside land was higher in the section of river kilometer 50~90, 140~180, and 210~270. Alluvial island had higher change rate in the section of river kilometer 50~70, 190~210, and 270~310. Average change rate for the riverside land and alluvial island was - 1.02±0.14 km² ·10 km¯¹ and - 0.05±0.05 km² ·10 km¯¹, respectively. Channel shaped wetlands (72.5%) constituted large portion of newly constructed wetlands.

낙동강 수계의 20개 저수지 및 습지에서 환경요인에 대한 동물플랑크톤 군집의 영향을 평가하기 위해 계절별 조사를 수행하였으며 다양한 환경 요인에 대한 동물플랑크톤의 영향을 효과적으로 분석하기 위해 Self-Organizing Map(SOM) 분석을 이용하였다. 총 109종의 동물플랑크톤 종이 동정되었으며, 동물플랑크톤의 밀도와 종수는 계절에 따라 상이한 분포를 나타냈다. 특히, 가을은 다른 계절보다 동물플랑크톤의 높은 종수와 밀도를 기록하였다(98종, 603 ind. /L). 윤충류는 다른 환경요소보다 수온과 밀접하게 연관되었으며, 이는 계절에 따른 영향을 크게 받는 것으로 보인다. 지각류와 요각류는 전기전도도, Chl. a, 영양염류(TN, TP) 대해서 영향 받았으며, 이는 오염원 및 먹이원에 영향을 크게 받는 것으로 보인다. 그러나, 용존산소가 높은 정수역에서는 대부분 동물플랑크톤이 낮은 밀도를 보였다. 저수지 및 습지에서 출현하는 동물플랑크톤 군집은 수온이나 영양염류 등의 환경요인에 대해 주로 영향 받는 것으로 평가되었다. 결론적으로 저수지와 습지와 같은 정수역에서 출현하는 동물플랑크톤 군집의 조성 및 밀도는 환경요인과 밀접하게 연관되는 것으로 나타났으며, 환경요인의 변화는 동물플랑크톤의 계절성을 결정하는 중요한 요인인 것으로 평가되었다.

얕은 습지에서 환경 요인에 대한 어류의 분포와 종 조성을 평가하기 위해, 2012년 봄철(5~6월)에 경상남도에 위치한 24개의 습지에서 이화학적 요인, 수생식물, 어류 등을 조사하였다. 조사 기간 동안 20종의 어류가 동정되었으며, 잉어과 어류가 가장 우점하는 것으로 나타났다. 이화학적 요인 및 수생식물 생물량은 조사 지점에 따라 상이하였으며, 특히 수생식물 생물량은 어류 풍부도와 매우 밀접하게 관련되었다(df=1, F=32.00, P=0.001). 조사 지점간에 군집분석을 수행한 결과, 조사 지점들은 3개의 집단으로 구분되었으며, 이 또한 수생식물 생물량에 대한 영향으로 분석되었다. 첫 번째 집단의 습지에서는 검정우럭과 어류인 블루길에 의해서 우점되었으며, 그 외 어류 군집은 거의 출현하지 않았다. 두 번째 집단은 주로 잉어과 어류인 붕어가 우점한다는 점에서 첫 번째 집단과 차이를 보였다. 세 번째 집단에 속한 습지에서는 첫 번째 집단과 비슷하게, 블루길이 우점하였으나, 다른 어류 종 또한 다양하게 출현하였다. 결론적으로 얕은 습지에서 어류 군집의 분포와 종 다양성은 수생식물의 생물량에 의해 강하게 영향 받는 것으로 평가되었으며, 수생식물의 높은 생물량은 어류의 높은 풍부도 유지에 크게 기여하였다. 이러한 관점에서 습지를 복원하거나 새롭게 조성할 때 수생식물의 적절한 식재는 어류의 종 다양성에 영향을 줄 것으로 보이며, 어류가 수생태 먹이망 내에서 최상위포식자로서의 역할을 한다는 점을 감안할 때 먹이망의 건강성 유지에도 필수적일 것으로 사료된다.