Additional Habitat Confirmed for the Protected 'Balkongge' on Daebudo, Ansan

Balkongae

Gyeonggi Province has additionally confirmed the habitat of the marine protected species 'Balkongge' around Daebudo Island in Ansan City. This is an additional discovery about a year after the first habitat was found in August last year, the first in 50 years.

The Gyeonggi Marine Fisheries Resources Research Institute announced on the 14th that it discovered a Balkongge habitat on a tidal flat in Daebudo, Ansan City, through the regularly conducted 'Gyeonggi Tidal Flat Ecological Survey' project in June.

The newly discovered habitat is also on Daebudo Island in Ansan City but is located about 10 km away from the existing habitat. After additional morphological and genetic analyses, it was confirmed that about 10 to 15 Balkongge individuals per square meter inhabit an area of approximately 100㎡ around Daebudo.

Balkongge is a species whose population has been continuously decreasing due to the reduction of sandy intertidal zones, its habitat, caused by recent coastal development and pollution. Its size is very small, with a carapace length of only about 6 mm.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries designated Balkongge as a marine protected species in December 2021, prohibiting its capture and collection.

Kim Bong-hyun, director of the Marine Fisheries Resources Research Institute of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "The consecutive confirmations of Balkongge habitats are significant as they indicate the gradual recovery of the ecological value and health of Gyeonggi Province's tidal flats."

Since 2020, the institute has been observing the habitat status and environmental changes of tidal flat organisms at 10 tidal flat sites within the province until 2024 to respond to climate change. They are also monitoring tidal flat pollution and have confirmed the presence of about 150 species so far.

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