North Korea

Asia

105

Documented species

Parks and reserves

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North Korea is mountainous across close to eighty per cent of its surface, with wooded ranges descending towards narrow coastal plains. On the border with China rises Mount Paektu, a volcano with an enormous crater lake of freezing water, ringed by boreal forest where Asiatic black bears, gorals and lynx survive. The east coast is steep and deep, while the western one, on the Yellow Sea, has tidal flats that form part of the most important wader migration corridor on the planet. The wetlands of Rason, in the far northeast, host spotted seals and wintering waterbirds. Deforestation for firewood and hillside cultivation has caused severe erosion across much of the country.

The nature of North Korea

National animal: The northern goshawk is the national bird; the Siberian tiger is the emblematic animal of Korean tradition

Did you know?

The demilitarised zone that separates the two Koreas is a strip some two hundred and fifty kilometres long, mined, fenced and closed to human beings since 1953. Seven decades with no farming, hunting or building have turned it into an unintended nature reserve: red-crowned cranes and white-naped cranes winter there, gorals and musk deer live there, and signs have been gathered of the presence of large carnivores gone from the rest of the peninsula.

Biodiversity profile

Asia Oriental (peninsula de Corea)Aprox. 2,4% del territorio (314.000 ha) bajo 34 tipos de zonas designadas desde 1959, incluyendo 9 parques nacionales, 4 monumentos naturales, 2 reservas naturales y 3 areas protegidas

Climate

•Templado monzonico (Dwa), con inviernos frios y veranos calidos y humedos; clima mas continental que Corea del Sur en el interior montañoso

Main biomes

•Bosque templado de montaña (predominante en la mayor parte del territorio)
•Humedales a lo largo de los valles fluviales
•Zonas alpinas en las montañas Chilbo y Kumgang
•Bosque boreal de montaña
•Volcán con lago de cráter
•Marisma mareal del mar Amarillo
•Bosque templado caducifolio
•Humedal costero
•Ladera erosionada
•Río de montaña

Marine and coastal ecosystems

•Humedales costeros de importancia para aves, en ambas costas (Mar Amarillo y Mar del Este/Japon)

Flagship wildlife

•Tigre siberiano/de Amur (historicamente presente, hoy muy escaso)
•Grulla de corona roja y grulla de cuello blanco (zonas humedas)
•Oso negro asiatico
•Grulla de coronilla roja
•Grulla cuelliblanca
•Goral de cola larga
•Ciervo almizclero siberiano
•Foca moteada
•Azor común
•Lince euroasiático
•Águila de Steller
•Cigüeña oriental

Notable endemic species

•Datos de endemismo especifico no disponibles con precision en fuentes internacionales verificadas consultadas; el Monte Myohyang (Reserva de la Biosfera UNESCO) y los montes Chilbo y Kumgang son reconocidos como Areas Importantes para las Aves

Notable threatened species

•Dato no disponible con precision agregada en fuentes verificadas consultadas para el conjunto del pais

Notable protected areas

•Monte Myohyang (Reserva de la Biosfera UNESCO, 2009)
•Monte Kumgang y Monte Chilbo (Areas Importantes para las Aves)
•Reserva de la Biosfera del Monte Paektu
•Reserva de la Biosfera del Monte Kumgang
•Reserva de la Biosfera del Monte Myohyang
•Humedales de Rason
•Zona desmilitarizada
•Monte Chilbo

Main conservation threats

•Deforestacion y expansion agricola
•Tala ilegal y caza furtiva
•Contaminacion industrial y minera
•Falta de regulaciones ambientales efectivas y de capacidad de aplicacion
•Tensiones politicas y militarizacion de zonas como la Zona Desmilitarizada, que dificultan la investigacion y gestion de la conservacion

Conservation

The Yellow Sea tidal flats are a critical stopover for waders travelling between Siberia and Australia, and their loss to land reclamation on both sides of the sea is one of the greatest threats to migratory birds in the world.

Where and when to watch wildlife

Rason in winter for spotted seals and waterbirds. Mount Paektu in summer for boreal flora and fauna. The western tidal flats in spring and autumn for the wader passage.

La informacion disponible sobre biodiversidad de Corea del Norte es limitada en fuentes internacionales, dada la escasa investigacion contemporanea accesible sobre el estado de sus areas protegidas.

Sources: BioDB.com - North Korea | ScienceDirect - National parks and protected areas North Korea

Temperate forest Mountain Freshwater