Bryophyte flora of Taebaeksan Mountain National Park in Korea
Article information
Abstract
We investigated the bryophyte flora of Taebaeksan Mountain National Park in Korea by conducting a total of ten field surveys from April of 2017 to October of 2019 at various mountainous sites in the park. During the surveys, we recorded 274 taxa belonging to 68 families, 143 genera, 267 species, 3 subspecies, and 4 varieties. Among these, 92 species were reported as new to the flora of the Taebaeksan Mountains. A checklist based on a study of 990 specimens is provided as well. The most remarkable species were Sphagnum capillifolium (Ehrh.) Hedw, Sphagnum girgensohnii Russow, Buxbaumia punctata P.-C. Chen et X.-J. Li, Pleuroziopsis ruthenica (Weinm.) Kindb., Ptilium crista-castrensis (Hedw.) De Not., and Douinia plicata (Lindb.) Konstant. et Vilnet.
The Taebaeksan Mountains are located in the northern part of Korea, southeast of Gangwon-do Province (Taebaek-si, Youngwol-gun, and Jeongseon-gun) and northwest of Gyeongsangbuk-do Province (Bongwha-gun). Since it was designated as a provincial park on 13 May 1989, Taebaeksan Mountain has widened its realm and was designated as the 22nd national park on 12 Dec 2016. The park covers an area of more than 70.052 km2. The highest ridges of the mountain are Hambaeksan Mountain in the middle part (1,572 m a.s.l.), Janggunbong in the southern part (1,565 m a.s.l.), and Keumdaebong in the northwestern part (1,418 m a.s.l.). The mountain lies between 128°52′08″–128°59′26”E and 37°03′02″–37°14′34.5″N. The mean annual temperature in the lowland mountain area is 6.6°C, and the annual precipitation is 1,898 mm. The bryophyte flora of the Taebaeksan Mountains was investigated and included in the inventory of mosses and liverworts of the Korean peninsula by Hong (1966) and Choe (1980), but only 15 taxa were reported in these studies. More recently, Papp (2008) reported 144 bryophyte species in the flora of the Taebaeksan Mountains, and Choi (2013) reported 54 species of liverworts and hornworts. Because the bryophyte flora of the Taebaeksan Mountains has never been examined systematically, and only fragmentary floristic data are available, our objective was to describe the bryophytes of Taebaeksan Mountain National Park in as much detail as possible, including their latitudinal distribution and species ecology, as part of compiling a list of the bryophytes of Korea.
Materials and Methods
Field surveys
Our collections were carried out in habitats with a high diversity of bryophytes, such as wet habitats near stream beds, more or less dry rocks, bark of forest trees, and exposed stony fields and shaded cliffs near some mountain tops (Figs. 1, 2). We conducted a total of 10 field surveys from April 2017 to October 2019 at various sites in the park (Table 1).
All specimens were collected in newspaper or acid-free paper, and collection date, geographical coordinates, field herbarium numbers, collector names, preliminary species name, substrates, and habitats were recorded in the field. The collected materials were air-dried in the laboratory, and some species were cultivated in the greenhouse. All specimens were deposited in the Jeonbuk National University Herbarium (JNU) and in National Institute of Biological Resources Herbarium (KB).
Comparison of bryophyte species richness levels and liverwort index
The liverwort index, which is based on the character that liverworts and hornworts tend to prefer more humid conditions than mosses do, was calculated as follows (Nakanishi, 2001):
The latitudinal distribution of floristic elements among the liverworts
For the analysis of the distribution characteristics of liverworts, their world distribution was obtained from Lawton (1971), Noguchi (1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1994), Gao et al. (1999, 2003), Li et al. (2001, 2007), Wu et al. (2002, 2005, 2011), Hu et al. (2008), and Korean distribution was obtained from Choe (1980), Kim and Hwang (1991), Kim (1991), Bakalin (2010), and Choi (2013).
Results and Discussion
Bryophyte flora
Based on 990 herbarium specimens, we found that the bryophyte flora of the Taebaeksan Mountains includes 274 taxa belonging to 68 families, 143 genera, 267 species, 3 subspecies, and 4 varieties (Table 2). Of these, Bryophyta included 167 taxa (39 families, 93 genera, 163 species, 1 subspecies, and 3 varieties) and Marchantiophyta included 107 taxa (29 families, 50 genera, 104 species, 2 subspecies, and 1 variety). This is equivalent to 28.9% of the 958 bryophyte taxa recorded on the Korean peninsula (Lee et al., 2011; Choi, 2013). Among the recorded species, 92 taxa were newly recorded in the Taebaeksan Mountains (Appendix 1). The most numerous species were identified to be 15 taxa of Hypnaceae, followed by 12 taxa of Polytrichaceae, Mniaceae, and Brachytheciaceae (Appendix 1).
Comparison of bryophyte species richness levels and liverwort index
Compared with recently studied bryophyte flora [Deogyusan Mountain (Yoon et al., 2011; Choi et al., 2013), Hallasan Mountain (Yim, 2012), Sobaeksan Mountain (Korea National Park Research Institute, 2016a), and Gayasan Mountain (Korea National Park Research Institute, 2016b)], next to Hallasan Mountain (378 taxa) and Deogyusan Mountain (311 taxa), a large number of species were distributed in Taebaeksan Mountain (274 species), but the largest number of taxa (3.91) was found in Taebaeksan Mountain when compared with the area. The reason for this was that the Taebaeksan Mountain cover a small area, but include a variety of habitats, such as stony fields, coniferous forests, and small and large valleys. According to the liverwort index, which indicates the degree of humidity in the survey area, Taebaeksan Mountain (39.0%) was found to be relatively wet, and the only areas that were wet than Sobaeksan Mountain (41.9%) and Deogyusan Mountain (40.8%) (Table 3).
The latitudinal distribution of floristic elements among the liverworts
In the analysis of floristic elements based on latitude (Table 4), 25 taxa (23.4%) were found to be temperate, 21 (19.6%) temperate-subtropical, 19 (17.8%) arctic-boreal, 14 (13.0%) boreal temperature, 13 (12.1%) boreal, 8 (7.5%) subtropical, 5 (4.7%) multizonal, and 2 (1.9%) Arctic species (Table 4). Compared to the distribution characteristics of bryophyte flora of the Korean Peninsula, the bryophyte flora of the Taebaeksan Mountains is characterized by temperate-subtropical taxa (+5.0%), boreal-temperate taxa (+3.8%), temperate taxa (3.3%), arctic-boreal plants (+3.2%), and lowest number of subtropical plants (−12.6%). This may be because of the geographical location of the Taebaeksan Mountains, as well as because the number of boreal and temperate plants in the stony field areas scattered on the Taebaeksan Mountains is increasing.
Comparison with previous studies
The Taebaeksan Mountains were included in the areas investigated by Choe (1980) as part of the inventory of bryophytes of the Korean Peninsula. This author published a manual on Korean Hepaticae which included 15 taxa in the Taebaeksan Mountains (Choe, 1980). Choi (2013) reported 54 species of liverworts and hornworts on the Taebaeksan Mountains. The first survey focused on bryophytes was conducted by the Hungarian researcher Papp (2008) during 13–14 Oct 2005, and he recorded 144 taxa (102 mosses and 42 liverworts) and 13 taxa that were not yet recorded from the Korean peninsula (Buxbaumia punctata P.-C. Chen, Campylium squarrulosum (Besch) Kanda, Pylaisella polyantha (Hedw.) Grout, Polytrichastrum ohioense (Ren. et Card.) G. L. Smith, Pohlia proligera (Kindb.) Lindb., Plagiothacium curvifolium Schlieph., Warnstorfia exannulata (Schimp.) Loeske, Paraleucobryum sauteri (Bruch et Schimp.) Loeske, Orthorichum laevigatum var. japonicum Lewinsky, Isopterygiopsis muelleriana (Schimp.) Iwats., Hygrohypnum eugyrium (Schimp.) Broth., Cyrto-hypnum tamariscellum (C. Müll.) Buck, and Conocephalum salebrosum Szweykowski). One of these 13 unrecorded taxa (Buxbaumia punctata) was identified on site, and 12 taxa were included in the list of literature records. The literature and survey studies were identified in a total of 274 taxa (mosses 167 and liverworts 107 taxa).
Remarkable species
The most remarkable observed species were Sphagnum capillifolium (Ehrh.) Hedw and Sphagnum girgensohnii Russow, which are rarely found in Korea, as well as Buxbaumia punctata P.-C. Chen et X.-J. Li, which was found only in the Taebaeksan Mountains. Additionally, Pleuroziopsis ruthenica (Weinm.) Kindb., P. crista-castrensis (Hedw.) De Not., and Douinia plicata (Lindb.) Konstant. et Vilnet are rare-growing bryophytes which grow in high-altitude areas (more than 1,000 m) (Fig. 3).
Sphagnum capillifolium (Ehrh.) Hedw.: This species is distributed in Japan (Honshu, Hokkaido), China (Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Yunnan, Tibet), India, The Russian Far East, Europe, North America, South America, and Africa (Gao et al., 1999). In Korea, it was previously recorded only on Jeju Island (Choe, 1980). We found it on a stony field in a coniferous forest between Mangyeongsa Temple and Janggunbong at an elevation of 1,160–1,245 m. This species grows with Sphagnum girgensohnii Russ., Bazzania trilobata (L.) Gray, and Schistochilopsis cornuta (Steph.) Konstant.
Sphagnum girgensohnii Russow: This species is distributed in Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu), China (Huizhou, Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia, Jilin, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Tibet), Nepal, India, Indonesia, Russia, Europe, Greenland, and North America (Gao et al., 1999). In Korea, it was previously recorded in Baekdusan Mountain, Potaesan Mountain, Gwanmobong, Chailbong, Wagalbong, Kumgangsan Mountain, Seoraksan Mountain, Dutasan Mountain, Pyeongchang, Hwacheon, and on Jeju Island. We found it on a stony field in a coniferous forest between Mangyeongsa Temple and Janggunbong at an elevation of 1,160–1,245 m. This species grows with Sphagnum girgensohnii Russ., Bazzania trilobata (L.) Gray, Schistochilopsis cornuta (Steph.) Konstant, and Scapania ampliata Steph. in a forest of Thuja koraiensis Nakai.
Buxbaumia punctata P.-C. Chen et X.-J. Li: This species is distributed only in China (Henan, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Tibet) (Wu et al., 2005). We found it on the edge of a stony field in a coniferous forest between Mangyeongsa Temple and Janggunbong at an elevation of 1,160–1,245 m. This species grows with Pleuroziopsis ruthenica (Weinm.) Kindb., Douinia plicata (Lindb.) Konstant. et Vilnet, and Scapania ampliata Steph.
Pleuroziopsis ruthenica (Weinm.) Kindb.: This species is distributed in Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku), China (Chongqing, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Sichuan), Far East Russia, and North America (Gao et al., 1999). In Korea, it was previously recorded in Seoraksan Mountain, Jirisan Mountain, Sobaeksan Mountain, Deogyusan Mountain, Hallasan Mountain, Hwacheon, and Pyeongchang. We found it on the edge of a stony field in a coniferous forest in the Danggol Valley, Mangyeongsa Temple. This species grows with Pogonatum contortum (Menzies ex Brid.) Lesq. and Atrichum undulatum (Hedw.) P. Beauv.
Ptilium crista-castrensis (Hedw.) De Not.: This species is distributed in Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu), China (Guizhou, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Yunnan, and Tibet), Mongolia, Bhutan, Nepal, Russia, Europe, and North America. In Korea, it was previously recorded in Garigwangsan Mountain, Seoraksan Mountain, Sobaeksan Mountain, Pyeongchang, Cheongsong, and on Jeju Island. We found it on the edge of a stony field in a coniferous forest in the Danggol Valley, Mangyeongsa Temple. This species grows with Pleuroziopsis ruthenica (Weinm.) Kindb., Tritomaria quinquedentata (Huds.) H. Buch, Sphenolobus saxicola (Schrad.) Steph. and Barbilophozia barbata (Schreb.) Loeske.
Douinia plicata (Lindb.) Konstant. et Vilnet.: This species is distributed in Japan, China, Far East Russia, and North America. In Korea, it was previously recorded in Seoraksan Mountain, Jirisan Mountain, and Hallasan Mountain. We found it on the edge of the stony field in the Danggol Valley, Janggunbong, and Moonsubong. This species grows with Pleuroziopsis ruthenica (Weinm.) Kindb, and S. ampliata Steph.
Acknowledgements
The work was supported by the grant “Biological Diversity Survey of the Flora of Korean Bryophyta (NIBR201902104)” from the National Institute of Biological Resources of Ministry of Environment in Korea to C.W. Hyun. The work of Bakalin was partially supported by grants from the Russian Foundation for Basic researches (20-04-00278). Also, we would like to thank Editage (www.editage.co.kr) for English language editing.
Notes
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.