Zoogeography

Korea belongs to the Palearctic zoogeographical realm. Its geographical history, topography and climate divide the peninsula into highland and lowland districts. Included in the former are the Myohyangsan Range, the Gaema Plateau and the more rugged terrain of the Taebaeksan Range, all areas that are high in altitude and similar in climate to the Amur River region. Most of this area lies about 1,000 kilometers from Mt. Baekdusan on the Korean-Manchurian border. A large portion of this area is covered with boreal forests and many of the higher mountains supported glaciers during the Pleistocene period.

Animal life in and around this area is closely related to that of the boreal zone of Manchuria, China, Siberia, Sakhalin and Hokkaido. Representative species include: deer, roe deer, Amur goral, sable, brown bear, Siberian tiger, lynx, northern pika, water shrew, muskrat, Manchurian ring-necked pheasant, black grouse, hawk owl, pine grosbeak and three-toed woodpecker.

The remainder of the country comprises the lowland peninsular area, which enjoys a milder climate. The fauna, closely related to that of southern Manchuria, central China and Japan, includes black bear, river deer, mandarin vole, white-bellied black (or Tristram's) woodpecker, faiy pitta and ring-necked pheasant.

Species

There have been 408 species of birds recorded in South Korea. Of these, 90 species are vagrants, and the Kuroda's Sheldrake has probably become extinct. Of the other 317 species, 52 are permanent residents and 265 are migrants. Of the migratory birds, 112 species visit the country during winter season while 63 pass through during the summer and the remaining 90, during the spring and autumn seasons. One hundred and fifteen species breed in Korea, of which 52 are indigenous species and 63 are summer visitors. There are 14 other species of birds recorded in North Korea. Of these, the black grouse, hawk owl, rufous-bellied woodpecker, lesser-spotted woodpecker, black white-bellied woodpecker, three-toed woodpecker, and rufous-backed bunting are boreal residents of the high terrain of Mt. Baekdusan; the rest are vagrants.

There are six orders, 17 families, 48 genera and 78 species of indigenous mammals in Korea. These include 28 species of Chiroptera, 18 Rodentia, 16 Carnivora, 11 Insectivora, two Lagomorpha, and seven Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates). There are 28 endemic subspecies on record that inhabit the peninsula, but this is yet to be verified. Large mammals include the tiger, leopard, lynx, leopard cat, wolf, badger, bear, marten, weasel, wild boar, roe deer, and Amur goral. A few species such as the bat, shrew, striped hamster and muskrat are found only in North Korea. The tiger, lynx, two species of deer, sable, and northern pika are found only in the plateau regions of Mt. Baekdusan in North Korea. Other wildlife species in South Korea include 25 reptiles, 14 amphibians and 130 freshwater fishes.

Seventeen species of terrestrial mammals have been found on Jejudo island. Wild bear, deer, and wild cat are now extinct and today the land is inhabited by roe deer, weasel, hamster, field mouse, house rat and two bat species; there are also 283 forms of birds, and eight amphibians and reptilians on the island.

Ulleungdo island is devoid of endemic mammals. The island's known mammals consist of six species (two species of bat, one shrew and three house rats are also found on the Korean mainland). There are no amphibians or reptiles on the island except for frogs and snakes which have been introduced by man. As for birds, 63 species have been recorded on the island.

Natural Monuments

Twenty-four species of wildlife have been designated as natural monuments. In addition, twenty species of bird, two mammal species and several insect species have been designated as endangered species. There are 18 localities designated as breeding sites (eight egretries and heronries), passing or wintering sites, or habitats for Tristram's woodpecker, fairy pitta, and loon. Also designated as monuments are domesticated silky fowl, the Californian grey whale, the domestic Jeju horse (Jorangmal), the endemic dog called Jindogae, Sapsalgae and four fish species, Anguilla mormorata Quoy and Germard, Brachymystax lenox Pallas, Gonoprokopterus mylodon Berg and Siniperca scherzeri Steindachner.

The following species of animals include those designated as natural monuments by the Cultural Properties Preservation Law under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. For more detailed list, please refer to the appendix I located at the end of this chapter.

Tristram's (or white-bellied black) woodpecker, Dryocopus javensis richardsi
Total length: 46 centimeters. A large black and white woodpecker with a crimson crown and crimson cheek patches. Upper parts, throat and upper breast, black; the remainder of under parts and rump, white. Tristram's woodpecker is a permanent resident of Hwanghae-do province, North Korea.

Old records indicate that such woodpeckers were collected occasionally around Hwanghae-do (North Korea), Chungcheongbuk-do and Gyeongsangnam-do Province but the only reliable breeding places that have been reported are Gwangneung and Geumneung in Gyeonggi-do province. This large woodpecker is a rare resident of the small area of heavy forested area remaining in Korea. Nesting success in Korea was also confirmed in the forest of Hwanghae-do province. These birds change their nesting site within a short distance each year.

White-naped crane, Grus vipio
Total length: 119 centimeters. A pale grey crane with a white head and neck; grey on the body continues up the sides of the neck in a narrow line to a little below the eye. Lore naked and red; legs, red.

This bird is a regular winter visitor and passage migrant. The species is the most abundant of all the cranes in Korea, but its number has decreased in recent years. In November and February of every year, the flocks of about 2,000 birds concentrate in the estuary of the Hangang river and the Cheorwon Basin, Gangwon-do province. The estuary and basin are bird sanctuaries designated as Natural Monuments No. 250 and 245 respectively. The crane migrates to Korea in late October and November and winters here until the end of March.

Baikal Teal, Anas formosa (Georgi)

The Baikal Teal (Anas formosa) is a handsome duck found in Northeast Asia. Although it was extremely common in early last century, in recent years numbers have declined dramatically, and it now joins the rank of the three rarest species of teal in the world, along with the Madagascar Teal (Anas bernieri), the New Zealand Brown Teal (Anas aucklandica) and the Marbled Teal (Marmaronetta augustirostris) of Central Asia.

The Baikal Teal is larger than the Common Teal (Anas crecca), and the male is easily identifiable by its striking yellow and green head and grey and brown body. In comparison, the female has a duller head with a prominent white circular spot at the base of the bill as well as plainer rufous brown plumage.

The Baikal Teal is now rarely seen during the winter season. It has been sited in only a few locations in Korea, China and Japan. The present world population is estimated to be about 75,000 birds. Taking into consideration this decline in population, the species has only recently been listed under the CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) conservation in an attempt to monitor international trade of the species.

The Baikal Teal only breeds in northeast Russia, preferring the river valleys and basins of Anadyr, Kolyma, Yana, Indigirka Lena and Amur, the Okhotsk coast and Kamchatka. It winters in rice fields and wetlands in Korea, China and Japan. There are records of stray birds from northwestern India, Nepal, Hong Kong and North America.

The main cause of the decline in numbers is believed to be hunting. A common traditional method of hunting the Baikal Teal in Japan was the use of throw nets, whereby huge nets are thrown into bird flocks as they fly at dusk to regular feeding grounds. Today, shooting is the most common method of hunting the Baikal Teal, especially in Russia and China. At Lake Khanka in Russia, there used to be a three-week hunting season of this species when the birds migrated through. Birds are also killed by adding poisons or pesticides to grain. Poisoning technique is still practiced in China, and was formally used in Korea as well.

The Baikal Teal has also become a popular species in wildfowl collections and zoos, as the birds are so easily collected. Large numbers were exported by dealers in China and Hong Kong for the international market. Due to its shy nature, however, the Baikal Teal is a difficult species to breed in captivity until recently. Consequently, a continuous supply from the wild was needed to provide new birds for these collections.

Migration routes between breeding and wintering grounds are not exactly known. They are believed to travel quickly, making use of different routes in autumn and spring. The birds use river valleys with associated flood waters, marshes and freshwater lakes during migration. Large numbers used to pass through southeastern Russia, particularly the Amur Valley and Lake Khanka. During the springtime, about 5,000-10,000 birds stop over at Lake Khanka.

The birds leave their breeding grounds in late August-September and arrive in their wintering grounds in late October. They depart northwards in March and reach their breeding destinations by April-May. Little information is available on the breeding biology of the Baikal Teal. The birds build their nests in grass and sedge tussocks, often in dwarf forests of birch and willow.

The bill is shaped for filter feeding, with similar filter palates as those found in Common Teal, but the Baikal Teal has apparently evolved from an aquatic filter feeder due to its predominantly terrestrial diet. The main food during the winter season consists of rice grain and seeds, as well as aquatic invertebrates and fish. Consequently, during this period they are mainly associated with large flat expanses of rice-fields and large open areas of freshwater that remain ice-free for safe roosting.

The Baikal Teal was a common passage migrant through Korea on its way to Japan. With the decline in numbers, however, few birds are believed to migrate through the Primorye Territory anymore. As recently as 1984, the Baikal Teal was discovered to winter in Korea. Important wintering sites are Cheonsuman impoundment water, Sapgyoho lake of Asanman bay, Geumgang estuary, the west coast, Tapjeong impoundment water, Nonsan and the lakes at Cheongam in the flood plain of the Nakdonggang Valley, in Gyeongsangnam-do province. Since 1987, about 70,000 birds have been observed there each winter. Korea is now the world's largest known concentration of the species, holding over 90 percent of the world's known population. Small numbers spend the winter at Upo Marsh in the Nakdonggang Valley.