- KOREAN
- P-ISSN2287-8327
- E-ISSN2288-1220
- SCOPUS, KCI
ISSN : 2287-8327
Vol.38 No.1
Abstract
Whilst it is clear that increasing temperatures from global environmental change will impact the positions of alpine treelines, it is likely that a range of regional and local scaled factors will mediate the overall impact of global scale climate drivers. We summarized 12 categories of abiotic and biotic factors as 4 groups determining treeline positions. First, there are global factors related to climate-induced growth limitation and carbon limitation. Second, there are seven regional and local factors related to treeline dynamics including frost stress, topography, water stress, snow, wind, fire and non-fire disturbance. Third, species-specific factors can control treeline dynamics through their influence on reproduction and life history traits. Fourth, there are positive feedbacks in structuring the dynamics of treelines. Globally, the com¬monly accepted growth limitation hypothesis is that growth at a treeline is limited by temperature. Meanwhile, positive feedbacks between canopy cover and tree establishment are likely to control the spatial pattern and temporal dynamics of many treelines. The presence of non-linear dynamics at treelines has implications for the use of treelines as barometers of climate change because the lagged responses and abrupt shifts inherent in non-equilibrium systems may combine to mask the overall climate trend.
Abstract
This study was conducted in an effort to provide important clues pertaining to the conservation and restoration of Aporia crataegi by identifying the spatial distribution characteristics of the current habitats, prospective habitats, and future habitats of A. crataegi in accordance with climate changes. To determine the distribution of A. crataegi, data from a total of 36 collecting points throughout South Korea, North Korea, China, Japan, Mongolia, and Russia are used. The spatial distributions of the data were examined through MaxEnt modeling. The distribution probability rates exceeded 75% at 18 locations among the 36 species occurrence locations, with Gangwon province showing the highest distribution prob¬ability in South Korea. The precision of the MaxEnt model was remarkably high, with an AUC value of 0.982. The vari¬ables that affect the potential distribution of A. crataegi by more than 10% are the degree of temperature seasonality, the amount of precipitation in the warmest quarter, the annual mean temperature, and the amount of precipitation in the driest month, in that order of importance. It was found that the future potential distribution area of A. crataegi continu¬ously moves northward over time up to 2070s. In addition, the area of the potential distribution showing a habitable prob¬ability rate that exceeds 75% in northeast Asia was 28,492 km2, where the area of potential distribution in the north part of Korean peninsula was 20.404 km2 in size. Thus, it is anticipated that the most important future habitats of A. crataegi in the northeast Asia will be North and South Hamgyeong provinces and Ryanggang province near Mt. Baekdoosan in the northern area of the Korean peninsula.
Abstract
This study was conducted in an effort to identify the fluctuation of species according to space and time by collecting information on samples of Korean Sphingid moths housed in Korea. The number of Sphingidae moth species housed in Korea was found to be 53. As 48 species and 47 species were found in Gyeongsangnam-do and Gangwon-do, respectively, relatively diverse species were considered to be distributed in these areas. Comparatively, in Jeollabuk-do only 36 species were found, whereas in Chungcheongbuk-do and Jeju Island 39 species were found. The number of individual Sphingid moths surveyed in Korea was 21,414. With regard to the number of individuals per species, Ampelophaga rubiginosa was highest, at 2,483, followed by Theretra japonica (1,716), Callambulyx tatarinovii (1,457), Acosmeryx naga (1,340), Rhagastis mongoliana (1,191), Marumba sperchius (1,083), and Dolbina tancrei (1,072). By region, the largest number of individuals was surveyed in Gyeongsangnam-do (4,595), followed in order by Gangwon-do (3,648 individuals), Gyeonggi-do (3,011), Jeollanam-do (2,454), and Jeju Island (2,382). Over time, the highest numbers—in this case 9,498 individuals in 52 species—were identified after 2000. In the 1990s, there were 6,027 of 49 species identified; in 1980s, 4,332 individuals of 49 species were identified; and, in the 1970s, 937 individuals of 45 species were identified. It was confirmed that more species and individuals were identified as time passed. The appearance of Sphingid moths by month was found to be as relatively diverse, as they appeared from February to November. Overall, southern species, including M. saishiuana, Cephonodes hylas, Acosmeryx castanea, T. nessus, and T. clotho, which mainly inhabit Jeju Island and the southern part of Korea, have increased over time from the past to the present. Species inhabiting the middle or northern parts of the Korean Peninsula or the entire country of Korea, including Sphingulus mus, Ambulyx schauffelbergeri, and Mimas christophi, show decreases over time.
Abstract
In this study, the dependence of local conspecific abundance on seed set and predation was examined, and determinates of population density of the temperate tree species Carpinus laxiflora (Betulaceae) in Inagi city, Tokyo, Japan were identi¬fied. During a good seed year (2013), seeds were sampled from 27 individuals and categorized as Sound, Empty, Predated, Immature, Decayed, or Broken. Empty seeds were identified as those that failed to fertilize and predation rates were defined as the proportion of seeds that were affected by predators. The proportion of the seed set that was fertilized was significantly positively correlated with local abundance of conspecific trees, while the proportion of seeds that escaped predation was significantly negatively correlated with local abundance of conspecific trees. Thereby, the production of Sound seeds was highest at sites with moderate local conspecific abundance. Although this phenomenon was only ob¬served in a few cases, it clearly showed optimal reproductive success under conditions of moderate density of conspecific reproductive adults, suggesting a mechanism that controls the population density of this species.
Abstract
Ailanthus altissima, which is recognized as an invasive tree in the Western world, has been widely observed in Japan. To investigate how A. altissima expanded within-population and to new populations within a region, 446 A. altissima trees were sampled from three separate sites (A, B, and C) including 35 distantly positioned patches, with three chloroplast DNA markers and nine nuclear microsatellite markers. We detected 2, 2, and 3 chloroplast haplotypes in sites A, B, and C, respectively. In addition, 271, 40, and 41 nuclear genotypes were detected in sites A, B, and C, respectively. The clonal richness value was 0.85, 0.78, and 0.53 in sites A, B, and C, respectively. Most trees with the same genotypes were distrib¬uted in the same patch, indicating that range expansion by asexual reproduction was limited to a maximum of 45 meters. According to autocorrelation analysis, the extent of nonrandom spatial genetic structure was approximately 0-2 km in sites A and C. KINGROUP analyses showed that 812, 74, and 111 nuclear genotype pairs were detected to have kinship in sites A, B, and C, respectively. Most nuclear genotype pairs were detected within the same patches or sites. These results indicate that the number of A. altissima trees gradually increased from seeds, some of which were produced by trees within sites, meaning that this species could regenerate naturally. This shows the need for the future management of A. altissima as an invasive species in Japan.
Abstract
A natural mixed stand of Phragmites australis and Phacelurus latifolius was studied to clarify the distribution properties in a microsite in a tidal flat of Suncheon Bay. The height, density, and biomass of the shoots, as well as the biomass of the root system, were monitored for both species along with the altitude on a mound from June 2010 to October 2013. Firstly, the mean height and dry weight of both species were similar during the growth season. However, individual variations of the sizes of plants in the same species were noticeable. Secondly, the density and dry weight per unit area of P. latifolius increased, but that of P. australis decreased with the altitude on the mound. Thirdly, the root system (rhizomes and roots) of P. latifolius was mostly located in the upper layer (up to 20 cm depth), while that of P. australis was in the lower layer (over 70 cm depth) of the sediment. The roots of P. australis penetrated to the lower parts of the water table, while the roots of P. latifolius did not make contact with free water of the sediment. Fourthly, the removal of the shoot in the early growth season led to a visible reduction of biomass in the late growth season. The reduction rate was larger in P. latifolius than in P. australis. Lastly, in the area where the mound was removed, the density of P. australis increased in the first two years (2010-2011) and was highly sustained inthe last two years (2012-2013). However, the density of P. latifolius was low, and this plant was distributed at the edge of the mound only.
Abstract
Three strains of the green microalga Botryococcus braunii (JJS, KCM, and KJD) were isolated from different water bodies in Korea and grown as batch cultures in the laboratory. The effects of different growth media and temperatures on the growth rate were investigated, as well as the effect of temperature on the total lipid content and lipid profile. All three strains had the highest growth rates in BG-11 medium and at 25°C. Maximal lipid production (g L-1) was at 30°C in the JJS strain and at 25°C in the KCM and KJD strains. However, all the three strains produced the greatest percent dry weight of total lipids at 15°C and had the lowest percent dry weight of total lipids at 25°C. In general, oleic acid, linolenic acid, and behenic acid were the most common fatty acids in all three strains. However, the three strains varied considerably in their fatty acid profiles at different culture temperatures.
Abstract
Tropical forests play a critical role in mitigating climate change, and therefore, an accurate and precise estimation of trop¬ical forest carbon (C) is needed. However, there are many uncertainties associated with C stock estimation in a tropical forest, mainly due to its large variations in biomass. Hence, we quantified C stocks in an intact lowland mixed dipterocarp forest (MDF) in Brunei, and investigated variations in biomass and topography. Tree, deadwood, and soil C stocks were estimated by using the allometric equation method, the line intersect method, and the sampling method, respectively. Understory vegetation and litter were also sampled. We then analyzed spatial variations in tree and deadwood biomass in relation to topography. The total C stock was 321.4 Mg C ha-1, and living biomass, dead organic matter, and soil C stocks accounted for 67%, 11%, and 23%, respectively, of the total. The results reveal that there was a relatively high C stock, even compared to other tropical forests, and that there was no significant relationship between biomass and topography. Our results provide useful reference data and a greater understanding of biomass variations in lowland MDFs, which could be used for greenhouse gas emission-reduction projects.
Abstract
In 2013, the epidemics of pine wilt disease caused by the pine wood nematodes (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus) resulted in damages to the forests of black pine (Pinus thunbergii Parl.) trees in Jeju Island, Korea. Among the affected trees, an old black pine tree at Cave Temple on Mt. Sanbangsan was included and died due to the prevalence of pine wilt disease. The tree was on Mt. Sanbangsan, which was designated as a National Scenic Place with the Number 77 and was believed to be more than 400 years old in age. By examining the disc of the tree stem obtained from the height of 2 m, we counted the tree rings from 4 different directions and cross-dated the readings by comparing the records of drought simulated from the BROOK Model. Our analysis indicates that the tree seems to have grown since late 1860s. Contrary to the belief of the general public, we can conclude that the age of the tree was estimated to be at maximum 150 years, which means that it was not the same old tree as was shown in the painting of the Tam-Ra-Sun-Ryeok-Do (an old painting book for the Inspection Tour of Jeju Island) published in 1702. Discussion was extended to the life history of the tree in growth and leaning and the measures to protect the tree species from the damages of the pine wilt disease caused by pine wood nematodes.
Abstract
Because an ecological community consists of diverse species that vary nonlinearly with environmental variability, its dynamics are complex and difficult to analyze. To investigate temporal variations of benthic macroinvertebrate com¬munity, we used the community data that were collected at the sampling site in Baenae Stream near Busan, Korea, which is a clean stream with minimum pollution, from July 2006 to July 2013. First, we used a self-organizing map (SOM) to heuristically derive the states that characterizes the biotic condition of the benthic macroinvertebrate communities in forms of time series data. Next, we applied the hidden Markov model (HMM) to fine-tune the states objectively and to obtain the transition probabilities between the states and the emission probabilities that show the connection of the states with observable events such as the number of species, the diversity measured by Shannon entropy, and the bio-logical water quality index (BMWP). While the number of species apparently addressed the state of the community, the diversity reflected the state changes after the HMM training along with seasonal variations in cyclic manners. The BMWP showed clear characterization of events that correspond to the different states based on the emission probabilities. The environmental factors such as temperature and precipitation also indicated the seasonal and cyclic changes according to the HMM. Though the usage of the HMM alone can guarantee the convergence of the training or the precision of the derived states based on field data in this study, the derivation of the states by the SOM that followed the fine-tuning by the HMM well elucidated the states of the community and could serve as an alternative reference system to reveal the ecological structures in stream communities.
Abstract
In this paper, the cooperative research on the biodiversity conservation in North-East Asia is introduced. This research was initiated by National Institute of Biological Resources (NIBR) in 2012. The bilateral MOU and following MOA had been signed between NIBR and National University of Mongolia (NUM) in 2012, whereas those had been signed between NIBR and Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Science (IOZ, CAS) in 2013. Details of the cooperative research based on those were presented.
Abstract
Conservation drones are remote-controlled devices capable of collecting information from difficult-to-access places while minimizing disturbance. Although drones are increasingly used in many research disciplines, their application to wildlife research remains to be explored in depth. This paper reports on the use of Phantom 2 Vision+ for monitoring areas in two national parks in South Korea. The first research area was conducted in Chiaksan National Park, and the sec¬ond in Taeanhaean National Park. The aim of this research is to introduce ecologists and researchers alike to conservation drones and to show how these new tools have are fundamentally helping in the development of natural sciences. We also obtained photographs and videos of monitoring areas within our test site.
Abstract
It is very useful and important to see the status and change of necessary parts in a short period through selecting and observing the bioindicator continually to forecast and prepare the future. Especially, living things are so closely related to the environment that the indicator between the environment and living things shows close interrelationship. Also, the indicator related to environment provides information about representative or decisive environmental phenomenon and is used to simplify complicated facts. Considering wide range of background and application including various indica¬tors such as the change-, destruction-, pollution-, and restoration of habitats, climate change, and species diversity, the closest category includes “environmental indicator,” “ecological indicator,” and “biodiversity indicator.” The selection and use of bioindicator is complicated and difficult. The necessary conditions for the indicator selection are flexible and greatly depend on the goals of investigation such as the indicator for biological diversity investigation of specific area, the indicator for habitat destruction, the indicator for climate change, and the indicator for polluted area. It should meet many various conditions to select a good indicator. In this study, eleven selection standards are established based on domestic and overseas studies on bioindicator selection: species with clear classification and ecology, species distributed in geographically widespread area, species that show clear habitat characteristics, species that can provide early warning for a change, species that are easy and economically benefited for the investigation, species that have many independent individual groups and that is not greatly affected by the size of individual groups, species that is thought to represent the response of other species, species that represent the ecology change caused by the pressure of human influence, species for which researches on climate change have been done, species that is easy to observe, appears for a long time and forms a group with many individuals, and species that are important socially, economically, and culturally.