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Our study deals with how the short nine-spine stickleback Pungitius kaibarae uses visual cues to select among habitats, thereby reducing predation pressure from the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica. We examined the behaviour of P. kaibaraein selecting four habitats (water weed, sandy, rocky and open water) under the presence/absence of A. japonica. Using video tracking technology, we found that in the presence of A. japonica, sticklebacks preferred specific refuge patches, such as waterweed and rocks, over open water with a sandy bottom. Thus, our investigation demonstrated the importance of habitat structures in evoking escape behaviour. We discuss the importance of this bold behaviour patterns of the prey fish.Keywords: Bold behaviour, Stickleback, Eel, Swimming speed, Video tracking

Este artículo contiene 10 páginas, 2 figuras, 1 tabla., [EN]The corixid Sigara (Subsigara) distincta (Fieber, 1848) in the Pyrenees: a first record for Spain and an unsolved taxonomic puzzle The occurrence of Sigara (Subsigara) distincta (Fieber, 1848) in Spain is reported for the first time based on specimens collected in the Pyrenean municipality of Vielha e Mijaran (Central Pyrenees). Multiple captures between 2014-2018 indicate that S. distincta successfully established itself in Lake Vilac (1640 m a.s.l.), a small mesotrophic water body under Atlantic climate. High-throughput sequencing (HTS) technologies are valuable tools for freshwater bioassessment and detection of rare taxa. A DNA metabarcoding study carried out on macroinvertebrate samples supported the presence of S. distincta in the lake, thus corroborating morphological identification of imagines and greatly facilitating the identification of immature stages, which otherwise would be a difficult if not impossible task. By means of DNA barcode sequencing of individuals from Lake Vilac, we detected a rare haplotype of S. distincta previously recorded in Northern Germany. Our sequences showed to be clearly segregated from other publicly available S. distincta sequences, according to phylogenetic analysis. The results support the hypotheses of the existence of two highly divergent S. distincta lineages across Europe. A major taxonomic revision of Subsigara Stichel, 1935 species, combining both molecular and morphological approaches will be needed to shed light on the causes of high genetic intraspecific variation in S. distincta and related species.[ES]El coríxido Sigara (Subsigara) distincta (Fieber, 1848) en los Pirineos: una primera cita para España y un rompecabezas taxonómico no resuelto Se reporta por primera vez para España la especie Sigara (Subsigara) distincta (Fieber, 1848), en base a individuos recolectados en el municipio pirenaico de Vielha e Mijaran (Pirineos centrales). La captura de individuos durante 2014-2018 indica que S. distincta se ha establecido con éxito en la laguna de Vilac (1640 m s.n.m.), una pequeña masa de agua mesotrófica bajo la influencia de clima atlántico. Las tecnologías de secuenciación de alto rendimiento (HTS) demostraron ser herramientas valiosas para la monitorización de ecosistemas acuáticos continentales y la detección de taxones raros. Un estudio de metabarcoding llevado a cabo sobre las muestras de macroinvertebrados de la laguna apoyó la presencia de S. distincta, corroborando la identificación morfológica de los imagos y facilitando en gran medida la identificación de estadios inmaduros, que de otra forma hubiera sido muy difícil, si no imposible, identificar. Mediante la secuenciación del código de barras genético de individuos de la laguna de Vilac, detectamos un raro haplotipo previamente registrado en el norte de Alemania. Nuestras secuencias mostraron estar claramente segregadas respecto otras secuencias de S. distincta disponibles públicamente, según los análisis filogenéticos. Los resultados apoyan la hipótesis de la existencia de dos linajes altamente divergentes de S. distincta en Europa. Una revisión taxonómica de las especies de Subsigara Stichel, 1935, combinando aproximaciones moleculares y morfológicas, será necesaria para aportar más información sobre las causas de la alta variabilidad genética intraespecífica de S. distincta y las especies cercanas., This work was funded by the European Commission LIFE+ project LIMNOPIRINEUS (LIFE13 NAT/ES/001210), and the Spanish Government projects FUNBIO (RTI2018-096217-B-I00) and BIOOCULT (2413/2017).

Length–weight relations were estimated for 14 fish species sampled from the coastal waters off the Gwangyang Bay in South Korea. The following species were studied: Okamejei kenojei (Müller et Henle, 1841); Muraenesox cinereus (Forsskål, 1775); Thryssa adelae (Rutter, 1897); Thryssa kammalensis (Bleeker, 1849); Tribolodon hakonensis (Günther, 1877); Inimicus japonicus (Cuvier, 1829); Chelidonichthys spinosus (McClelland, 1844); Jaydia lineata (Temminck et Schlegel, 1842); Sillago japonica Temminck et Schlegel, 1843; Pholis nebulosa (Temminck et Schlegel, 1845); Favonigobius gymnauchen (Bleeker, 1860); Pampus echinogaster (Basilewsky, 1855); Cynoglossus joyneri Günther, 1878; Takifugu niphobles (Jordan et Snyder, 1901).The length–weight relation of Thryssa adelae (Rutter, 1897), (Engraulidae) has not been previously reported. The new maximum total length of Thryssa kammalensis (18.0 cm) is now provided. The values of coefficient a ranged from 0.0007 to 0.0218, and the values of exponent b ranged from 2.82 to 3.52.

Semi-permanent anthropogenic connectivity regulation in rivers, such as via weirs and dams, affects the plankton community. We hypothesised that the longitudinal similarity of the zooplankton community in a river could change in a river-reservoir hybrid system (RRHS). The impact of weir construction on zooplankton communities in terms of species diversity, abundance, and community structure was examined biweekly at six sites on the Nakdong River main channel for 14 years (before construction: 2002–2008; after construction: 2012–2018). We checked time series alignment using dynamic time warping between longitudinal survey sites, regardless of RRHS. Before and after RRHS, the zooplankton community showed an increasing number of species. RRHS decreased the longitudinal connectivity in terms of zooplankton species number and population density. Our study demonstrates that longitudinal zooplankton community trends can be used to study the connectivity of rivers and that longitudinal characteristics are disrupted in RRHSs.

Corbicula has often been reported as one of the most invasive freshwater species in the world. It plays an important role in the food chains of brackish water zones in Korea, where it is predominant. However, detailed information on the Corbicula diet is still lacking. The purpose of this study was to identify the potential prey of Corbicula fluminea in the Seomjin River using a DNA metabarcoding approach, as very little is known about its feeding selectivity in natural conditions. A survey was conducted at two study sites (1 and 2) in the Seomjin River in November 2021. The two sites were selected based on increasing salinity gradient. The dominant operational taxonomic unit in the pseudofeces and gut content of C. fluminea was Microcyclops varicans (Copepoda) and Oncorhynchus mykiss (Fish), respectively. The alpha diversity at site 1 was higher than that at site 2. More diverse potential prey species were identified at the site with low salinity (i.e., site 1). The utilization of this method is strongly recommended for determining specific predator–prey relationships in complex estuarine ecosystem.

This study describes the prey DNA fragments found in the feces of a migratory bird species, the little tern, Sternula albifrons (Pallas, 1764), based on a DNA barcoding approach. This species is found in Nakdong Estuary, South Korea, and is a species designated as ‘Least Concern’ (IUCN Red List). Prey identification is a central issue of population conservation, and we applied DNA barcoding (using cytochrome oxidase I; COI) to fecal materials from little tern individuals. We successfully identified prey consumed by little tern individuals. All prey items comprised one phylum including three classes, six orders, and eight families based on a robust dual certification scheme (combined analysis of BLASTn searches and phylogenetic tree construction). Even though the success of identification was largely dependent on the degree of completion of the database in the genebank or BOLD systems, an increased resolution of prey identification to species level is important in predator–prey research. The current study used a small number of fecal samples to evaluate the applicability of the COI barcoding region to avifaunal feces, and more fecal samples are expected to convey increased information that can be used to infer the range of the prey species of little terns.

Worldwide, increasing amounts of dams and weirs have been established in rivers in recent decades, often with drastic effects on their ecosystems. Between late 2009 and 2011, 16 large-scale dams were built in the main channels of the four largest rivers in South Korea, eight of these along the main channel of Nakdong River (300 km, 520 km in total). We studied the effect of these constructions on the fish community in the riparian zone based on intensive fish field surveys conducted in the littoral zone during 2007–2017, analysis of fishermen's catch data and molecular analysis of the diet of the keystone species, largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). Our results, based on RDA and GLM analyses, showed that environmental characteristics and fish species composition changed significantly with dam construction. Total fish abundance and biomass decreased after the start of the weir construction and fish richness decreased with time. The abundance and biomass of exotic fish decreased during construction but recovered afterwards, leading to higher proportions of exotics. Dominance and Shannon indices did not change significantly from before to after construction, while the Evenness index showed a significant decreasing trend. A comparison of the diet composition of largemouth bass showed decreasing genetic variation after construction. The changes in Functional Feeding Group (FFG) of the benthic communities at the study sites did not coincide with FFG changes in the prey items of largemouth bass, indicating a transition in feeding mode from before to after construction. In conclusion, the endemic and native fish species were most sensitive and showed lower resilience to disturbance by the large-scale dam construction than the translocated and exotic species, and the lake-like ecosystems after construction markedly improved the competitive capacity of these exotic fish over the native and endemic species in the riparian zone of the river.

Simple Summary Copepods are important components of marine coastal food chains, supporting fishery resources by providing prey items mainly for fish. Copepods interact with small microorganisms via feeding on phytoplankton. DNA methods can determine the gut contents of copepods and provide important information regarding how copepods interact with phytoplankton and bacteria. In the present study, we designed a method for extracting the gut content DNA from small-sized copepods that are important in coastal and brackish areas. Based on DNA analyses, Rhodobacteraceae, which is common in marine waters and sediments, was most abundant in the gut contents of the three copepod species (Acartia hudsonica, Sinocalanus tenellus, and Pseudodiaptomus inopinus). However, the detailed composition of bacteria was different among species and locations. The results suggested that environmental variables and species-specific feeding behaviour can affect the gut bacterial community. The bacteria play an important role in digestion and in the overall degradation and release of metabolites to the outside water. Further analyses with advanced methods regarding DNA isolation from small microorganisms and identification skills using a DNA library for better understanding of biological interactions and matter cycling in marine food webs are required. Abstract The gut bacterial communities of copepods can affect metabolic processes, and consequently, their activity can be related to the release of organic substances to the environment. Hence, they are important for organic matter cycling in marine coast food webs. However, information regarding the variation in gut bacterial communities based on copepod species and environmental variations is limited. We analysed the differences in gut bacterial communities from dominant copepod species, i.e., Acartia hudsonica, Sinocalanus tenellus, and Pseudodiaptomus inopinus, in a brackish reservoir. The core bacteria among the copepod species and locations consisted of the following main operational taxonomic units (OTUs): Novosphingobium capsulatum and the family Rhodobacteraceae belonging to Alphaproteobacteria, which is abundant in seawater and freshwater aquatic ecosystems as a zooplankton-associated bacterial community. The bacterial community composition of each copepod (except the core species) showed high variability. The bacterial community diversity differed depending on the copepod species and the sites’ environmental conditions, especially salinity, e.g., compositional variations in the bacterial community of P. inopinus were high at sites with low salinity. Therefore, the gut bacterial community of each copepod species responds differently to the environment.

Chironomidae larvae play an important role in the food chain of river ecosystems in Korea, where it is dominant. However, detailed information on the diet of Chironomidae larvae are still lacking. The purpose of this study was to identify the gut contents of 4th instar larvae of a Chironomidae inhabiting four large-scale weirs (Sejong Weir, Juksan Weir, Gangjeong-Goryeong Weir, and Dalseong Weir) using a DNA meta-barcoding approach. We found that dominant Operational Taxonomic Unit (OUT) was assigned to Paractinolaimus sp. (Nematoda), and the sub-dominant OTU was assigned to Dicrotendipes fumidus (Chironomidae). The most common OTUs among the individuals included phytoplankton, such as Tetrahymena sp., D. armatus, Pseudopediastrum sp., Tetradesmus dimorphus, Biddulphia tridens, and Desmodesmus spp. We calculated the selectivity index (E&rsquo, ) and provided scientific evidence that Chironomidae larvae have a significant preference (E&rsquo, &gt, 0.5) for Desmodesmus armatus, E. minima, and T. dimorphus, while it does not show preference for other species found in its gut. Differences in physico-chemical factors, such as water quality, nutrients, Chl-a, and carbon concentrations, resulting from anthropogenic impacts (i.e., construction of large-scale weirs) as well as the particle size of prey organisms (small-sized single cell) and effects of chemicals (chemokinesis) could affect the feeding behavior of Chironomidae larvae.

We designed an experiment to analyze the gut content of Rotifera based on DNA barcoding and tested it on Asplanchna sp. in order to ensure that the DNA extracted from the rotifer species is from the food sources within the gut. We selected ethanol fixation (60%) to minimize the inflow effects of treated chemicals, and commercial bleach (the final concentration of 2.5%, for 210 s) to eliminate the extracellular DNA without damage to the lorica. Rotifers have different lorica structures and thicknesses. Therefore, we chose a pretreatment method based on Asplanchna sp., which is known to have weak durability. When we used the determined method on a reservoir water sample, we confirmed that the DNA fragments of Chlorophyceae, Diatomea, Cyanobacteria, and Ciliophora were removed. Given this result, Diatomea and cyanobacteria, detected from Asplanchna, can be considered as gut contents. However, bacteria were not removed by bleach, thus there was still insufficient information. Since the results of applying commercial bleach to rotifer species confirmed that pretreatment worked effectively for some species of rotifers food sources, in further studies, it is believed to be applicable to the gut contents analysis of more diverse rotifers species and better DNA analysis techniques by supplementing more rigorous limitations.

The study aims to assess the spatial distribution of benthic macroinvertebrate communities in response to the surrounding environmental factors related to land use and water quality. A total of 124 sites were surveyed at the Seomjin River basin in May and September 2017, respectively. We evaluated the abundance and composition of benthic macroinvertebrate communities based on nine subwatersheds. Subsequently, we compared the benthic information with the corresponding land use and water quality. To comprehensively explore the spatiotemporal distinction of benthic macroinvertebrate communities associated with those ambient conditions, we applied canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). The CCA results explicitly accounted for 61% of the explanatory variability, the first axis (45.5%) was related to land-use factors, and the second axis (15.5%) was related to water quality. As a result, the groups of benthic communities were distinctly characterized in relation to these two factors. It was found that land-use information is primarily an efficient proxy of ambient water quality conditions to determine benthic macroinvertebrates, such as Asellus spp., Gammarus spp., and Simulium spp. in a stream ecosystem. We also found that specific benthic families or genera within the same groups (Coleoptera, Diptera, Ephemeroptera, and Trichoptera) are also differentiated from ambient water quality changes as a secondary component. In particular, the latter pattern appeared to be closely associated with the impact of summer rainfall on the benthic community changes. Our study sheds light upon projecting benthic community structure in response to changes of land use and water quality. Finally, we conclude that easily accessible information, such as land-use data, aids in effectively characterizing the distribution of benthic macroinvertebrates, and thus enables us to rapidly assess stream health and integrity.

The complete mitochondrial genome of Stictochironomus akizukii (Tokunaga) was sequenced. The circular mitochondrial genome is 15,052 bp and consists of 13 protein-coding, 3 ribosomal RNAs, and 22 transfer RNA genes (GenBank accession no. MT185679). Results of maximum likelihood analysis showed that this species clustered with other species of the family Chironomidae. This study will contribute to the phylogenetics of genus Stictochironomus and the other genera of Chironomidae.

The nonlinearity and complexity of coastal ecosystems often cause difficulties when analyzing spatial and temporal patterns of ecological traits. Environmental DNA (eDNA) monitoring has provided an alternative to overcoming the aforementioned issues associated with classical monitoring. We determined aquatic community taxonomic composition using eDNA based on a meta-barcoding approach that characterizes the general ecological features in the Gwangyang Bay coastal ecosystem. We selected the V9 region of the 18S rDNA gene (18S V9), primarily because of its broad range among eukaryotes. Our results produced more detailed spatial patterns in the study area previously categorized (inner bay, main channel of the bay and outer bay) by Kim et al. (2019). Specifically, the outer bay zone was clearly identified by CCA using genus-level identification of aquatic organisms based on meta-barcoding data. We also found significant relationships between environmental factors. Therefore, eDNA monitoring based on meta-barcoding approach holds great potential as a complemental monitoring tool to identify spatial taxonomic distribution patterns in coastal areas.

The use of separated overfire air (SOFA) has become a standard technique of air staging for NOx reduction in the coal-fired boiler and can also be applied to existing boilers by retrofit. This study was to optimize the air distribution for the proposed SOFA installation in a 500 MWe tangential-firing boiler that has 20 identical units in Korea. Using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) incorporating advanced coal combustion submodels, the reference case was established in good agreement with the design data, and different flow ratios of burner secondary air, close-coupled OFA (CCOFA), and SOFA were evaluated. Increasing the total OFA ratio effectively suppressed NO formation within the burner zone but had a negative impact on the boiler performance. With moderate air staging, NO reduction became active between the CCOFA and SOFA levels and, therefore, the OFA distribution could be optimized for the overall boiler performance. For total OFA ratios of 25% and 30% with respective burner zone stoichiometric ratios of 0.847 and 0.791, increasing the SOFA ratio to 15% and 20%, respectively, was ideal for decreasing the unburned carbon release and ash slagging as well as NO emission. Too high or low SOFA ratios rapidly increased the unburned carbon because of inefficient mixing between the strong air jets and char particles. Based on these ideal cases, the actual air distribution can be adjusted depending on the coal properties such as the ash slagging propensity.

Our study focuses on methodological comparison of plankton community composition in relation to ecological monitoring and assessment with data sampling. Recently, along with the advancement of monitoring techniques, metabarcoding has been widely used in the context of environmental DNA (eDNA). We examine the applicability of eDNA metabarcoding for effective monitoring and assessment of community composition, compared with conventional observation using microscopic identification in a coastal ecosystem, Gwangynag Bay in South Korea. Our analysis is based primarily on two surveys at a total of 15 study sites in early and late summer (June and September) of the year 2018. The results of our study demonstrate the similarity and dissimilarity of biological communities in composition, richness and diversity between eDNA metabarcoding and conventional microscopic identification. It is found that, overall, eDNA metabarcoding appears to provide a wider variety of species composition, while conventional microscopic identification depicts more distinct plankton communities in sites. Finally, we suggest that eDNA metabarcoding is a practically useful method and can be potentially considered as a valuable alternative for biological monitoring and diversity assessments.

Our study aims to identify the spatial characteristics of water quality and sediment conditions in relation to fisheries resources, since the productivity of fisheries resources is closely related to the ambient conditions of the resource areas. We collected water quality samples and sediment contaminants from twenty-one sites at Gwangyang Bay, Korea, in the summer of 2018. Our study sites covered the area from the Seomjin River estuary to the inner and outer bays. To spatially characterize physicochemical features of Gwangyang Bay, we used Self-Organizing Map (SOM), which is known as a robust and powerful tool of unsupervised neural networks for pattern recognition. The present environmental conditions of Gwangyang Bay were spatially characterized according to four different attributes of water quality and sediment contamination. From the results, we put emphasis on several interesting points: (i) the SOM manifests the dominant physicochemical attributes of each geographical zone associated with the patterns of water quality and sediment contamination, (ii) fish populations appear to be closely associated with their food sources (e.g., shrimps and crabs) as well as the ambient physicochemical conditions, and (iii) in the context of public health and ecosystem services, the SOM result can potentially offer guidance for fish consumption associated with sediment heavy metal contamination. The present study may have limitations in representing general features of Gwangyang Bay, given the inability of snapshot data to characterize a complex ecosystem. In this regard, consistent sampling and investigation are needed to capture spatial variation and to delineate the temporal dynamics of water quality, sediment contamination, and fish populations. However, the SOM application is helpful and useful as a first approximation of an environmental assessment for the effective management of fisheries resources.

Sealing as a post treatment of anodized aluminum is required to enhance the corrosion resistance by filling nanopores, which allow the penetration of corrosive media toward the base aluminum. We designed a mixed sealing solution with nickel acetate and ammonium fluoride by modifying traditional nickel fluoride cold sealing. The concentration of mixed sealing solution affected the reaction rate of sealing and corrosion current density of anodized aluminum alloy. The higher concentration of mixed sealing solution improved the sealing rate, which was represented by a decrease of corrosion current density of anodized aluminum alloy. However, a mixed sealing solution with 2/3 concentration of general nickel fluoride sealing solution operated at room temperature showed the lowest corrosion current density compared to traditional methods (e.g., nickel fluoride cold sealing (NFCS) and nickel acetate hot sealing) and other mixed sealing solutions. Moreover, the mixed sealing solution with 2/3 concentration of general NFCS had a lower risk for over sealing, which increases the corrosion current density by excessive dissolution of anodic oxide. Therefore, the mixed sealing solution with optimized conditions designed in this work possibly provides a new method for enhancing the corrosion resistance of anodized aluminum alloys.

For renewable electricity production, biomass can fully displace coal in an existing power plant with some equipment modifications. Recently, a 125 MWe power plant burning mainly anthracite in Korea was retrofitted for dedicated wood pellet combustion with a change of boiler configuration from arch firing to wall firing. However, this boiler suffers from operational problems caused by high unburned carbon (UBC) contents in the bottom ash. This study comprises an investigation of some methods to reduce the UBC release while achieving lower NOx emissions. The computational fluid dynamics approach was established and validated for typical operating data. Subsequently, it was applied to elucidate the particle combustion and flow characteristics leading to the high UBC content and to evaluate the operating variables for improving the boiler performance. It was found that the high UBC content in the bottom ash was a combined effect of the poor fuel grindability and low gas velocity in the wide burner zone originating from the arch-firing boiler. This prevented the operation with deeper air staging for lower NOx emissions. Reducing the particle size to x emissions with deeper air staging while increasing the boiler efficiency.

A reduced-order model (ROM) for an entrained flow coal gasifier provides a real-time dynamic prediction of key performance parameters under various operating conditions. However, existing 1D ROMs cannot consider coal burners located on the sidewalls in Shell coal gasifiers frequently applied in commercial plants. In this study, a pseudo-2D ROM was developed to consider the characteristic flow pattern of the gasifier and coupled with a discretized slag-layer model for the wall. Some input parameters specific to the gasifier were determined from a detailed computational fluid dynamics study. Further, the measured differences between input coal ash and bottom slag composition were incorporated in the slag viscosity. The ROM was validated in two ways using the design and operation data of a 300-MW IGCC plant. First, the steady-state prediction showed good agreement with the design data at various loads in terms of syngas composition, heat duty, and exit gas temperature. This also implied that the predicted slag thickness on the wall was reasonable. Second, the ROM was applied to actual operation data over 7 h with two events. For a gradual increase in the target O2/coal ratio and sudden changes in the coal throughput, the dynamic response of the measured heat duty was successfully reproduced by the ROM. The predicted exit gas temperature reflected the instantaneous fluctuations of O2/coal ratio and appeared more reasonable than the correlation-based value used by the operators. The ROM clearly showed differences in the response rate between the exit gas temperature, heat duty, cold gas efficiency, and slag thickness for changes in the operation variables. It can be used as a real-time online simulator for advanced gasifier operation.

The complete mitochondrial genome of the freshwater bryozoan Pectinatella magnifica was sequenced. The circular mitochondrial genome is 17,539 bp and consists of 13 protein-coding, two ribosomal RNA, and 22 transfer RNA genes (GenBank accession no. MG546680). The Bayesian comparative analysis of molecular evolution rates revealed no acceleration of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) evolution of P. magnifica. Results of maximum likelihood analysis showed that this species clustered with other species of the phylum Bryozoa.

The concentrations and distributions of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and their hydroxylated and methoxylated derivatives (OH- and MeO-BDEs) were determined in seven representative fish species from a river in the Republic of Korea. The PBDEs and their derivatives were found to be accumulated in the internal organs of the fish to different extents. PBDEs were preferentially accumulated in the internal organs rather than muscle tissue, and especially, showed increasing accumulation tendencies with increasing bromination level in liver. The OH-BDEs and MeO-BDEs were preferentially accumulated in the liver and gastrointestinal tract, respectively. MeO-BDE concentrations were found to increase according to relative trophic level, suggesting that the PBDE derivatives can be biomagnified to a greater extent than the parent PBDEs in freshwater food webs. In a comparison with the dissolved analyte concentrations in the water that were measured by using semi-permeable membrane devices, the greater uptake of non-ortho substituted MeO-BDEs by fish was observed.

In this study, we applied Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) to the problem of identifying appropriate locations in cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene for species- or group-specific primer design. As concerns about ecological management grow, quantification of predator-prey interaction has become a central issue in ecology. Recently, improved techniques have allowed for the extensive use of genomic DNA barcoding for qualitative analysis. However, quantification of DNA barcoding results is important and still needs to be resolved. Even though species- or group-specific primers that can be used for samples containing multiple species are difficult to design, species- or group-specific primers are a practical solution for quantification in the current era. To resolve this issue, we present here an efficient method for discovering the regions of a DNA sequence that have the highest inter-species variability by applying the NSGA-II algorithm. DNA sequence information for the COI gene region was obtained for 24 species from Jo et al. (2014). These sequences were transformed into binary data, either 0 (not different) or 1 (different), to reflect sequence conservation at each base for all combinations of two species. These data were analyzed by two objective functions, the average and standard deviation of the difference, which were used in the NSGA-II algorithm to search for appropriate DNA locations for species-specific primer design. The NSGA-II program identified four solutions (possible primer binding sites); consequently NSGA-II is believed to be a suitable algorithm for species-specific primer design, and is expected to make this difficult and time-consuming process more efficient.

We systematically analyzed the Wetland Conservation Action Plan of Gyeongsangnam Province to evaluate conservation status in local government level. Project topics were categorized into 1) wetland infrastructure, 2) wetland conservation and wise use, 3) education and awareness, and 4) conservation framework. From 2010 to 2013, 42 projects (145 cases, 88,899 million won) were implemented by 14 affiliated organizations under Gyeongsangnam Provincial Government. The number of projects and budget size has been decreased over 4 years, besides most of main projects were continued. The budgets were largely used for wetland project of cities and counties. Development and implementation of various conservation projects may have considerable potential values in wetland conservation, while it is still difficult to assess their overall effectiveness in the society. Diverse wetland management practices in Gyeongsangnam Provincial Government have accumulated fundamental practices and knowledge for an effective local conservation. These administrative experiences will further benefit other local government to establish wetland management framework. To accelerate policy diffusion to other local governments, Gyeongsangnam Province needs to promote and share leading experiences and information of wetland conservation. Enhanced local government framework by the legislation at central government will further support country-level management plans and practices.

We investigated the influence of summer rainfall on Pectinatella magnifica colonies in lotic ecosystems. Of the examined substrate materials, branches and aquatic macrophytes supported more colonies of P. magnifica than that by stones or artificial materials. The influence of rainfall on P. magnifica colonies differed in accordance with the type of substrate material at each study site. In the Geum River, little difference was noted in the number of P. magnifica colonies on branches before (mean ± SE, 24 ± 7.3 individuals) and after rainfall (20 ± 8.4 ind.); other substrate types supported fewer colonies of P. magnifica after rainfall. In contrast, in the Miryang River, rainfall had minimal effect on the number of P. magnifica colonies supported by macrophytes (13 ± 3.8 and 12 ± 4.3 ind., respectively). Artificial material was more abundant in the Banbyeon Stream where it was able to support more colonies of P. magnifica . We found that the structure of different substrates sustains P. magnifica following rainfall. In the Miryang River, free-floating and submerged plants with a rela tively heterogeneous substrate surface were the dominant macrophytes, whereas in the Geum River, simple macrophytes (i.e., emergent plants) were dominant. Therefore, we conclude that the substrate type on which P. magnifica grows plays an important role in resisting physical disturbances such as rainfall.