Suwon Releases 2,000 Eoreumchi Fry into Geumgang River

Partial Confirmation of Eoreumchi Spawning Towers in Geumgang River Around April-May This Year

Employees of the National Institute of Fisheries Science under the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and fishermen from Geumsan-gun are releasing icefish.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] The National Institute of Fisheries Science (NIFS) under the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 19th that it released about 2,000 fry (around 5cm) of Eoreumchi, Natural Monument No. 259, into the main stream of the Geum River in Buri-myeon, Geumsan-gun, Chungnam on the 16th.

There are four freshwater fish species designated as natural monuments: Hwangssogari, Eoreumchi, Mihosonggae, and Kkochidongjagae. In the Geum River system, two species exist: Eoreumchi (main stream of Geum River) and Mihosonggae (tributaries of Geum River).

Eoreumchi is a native freshwater fish species distributed and inhabiting the Geum and Han River systems in Korea. It mainly lives in the middle and upper reaches of rivers and streams where the water is clear and the bottom is gravelly.

From April to May, it exhibits a unique ecological characteristic of digging into the gravel bottom in slow-flowing riffles to lay eggs, then piling up gravel again to build a spawning tower.

Eoreumchi was designated as Natural Monument No. 238 in 1972 (habitat in Iwon-myeon, Okcheon-gun, Chungbuk), but due to a rapid decline in population, the species itself was designated as Natural Monument No. 259 in 1978 for protection.

The Fisheries Science Institute developed artificial seed production technology for Eoreumchi in 2001 and has been conducting annual releases and monitoring to restore this natural monument species throughout the entire Geum River.

From 2001 to 2009, the release project was conducted in Muju-gun, Jeonbuk; from 2013 to 2017 in Okcheon-gun, Chungbuk; and since 2018, in Geumsan-gun, Chungnam.

The Central Inland Water Research Institute, under the Fisheries Science Institute and dedicated to studying Korea's inland water ecosystems, is scheduled to relocate to Buri-myeon, Geumsan-gun, where the recent release event took place, in 2021 (currently located in Cheongpyeong, Gyeonggi-do).

Choi Wanhyun, director of the National Institute of Fisheries Science, said, "We will do our best to ensure that the release of juvenile Eoreumchi serves as a catalyst to accelerate the restoration of this natural monument species in the Geum River."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.