Assessment of extinction risk of the endemic plant Coreanomecon hylomeconoides by species distribution modeling and climate change scenarios
Article information
Abstract
Climate change poses a significant threat to the survival of endemic plants that depend on narrow geographical ranges and specific environmental conditions. This study developed an ensemble model using six algorithms, applying climate change scenarios (SSP1-2.6, SSP3-7.0, SSP5-8.5) based on the habitat data (109 sites) of Coreanomecon hylomeconoides (Hereafter referred to as Coreanomecon), a plant endemic to the Korean Peninsula, and evaluated changes in geography, climate change sensitivity, and niche over-lap. The analysis showed that the current geographical center of Coreanomecon is in the southern temperate vegetation climate zone (Jeonnam and Gyeongnam provinces). The final period of the climate change scenarios (2071–2100) predicted a rapid reduction in the range of Coreanomecon, except for high-altitude mountain areas (–94.3% in SSP1-2.6, –99.9% in SSP3-7.0, and –100.0% in SSP5-8.5). In particular, under SSP5-8.5, the potential habitat and niche overlap could be eliminated. Coreanomecon, a southern plant, is highly vulnerable to climate change, necessitating targeted in-situ conservation, including the protection of high-elevation refugia and the consideration of assisted migration.
INTRODUCTION
Accelerated climate change is reducing the range of species, increasing their risk of extinction (Thomas et al., 2004; Parmesan, 2006). In particular, species adapted to specific climatic and geographical conditions are likely to be significantly affected by climate changes and may face a higher risk of extinction than widely distributed species (Palomo, 2017). Endemic species contribute significantly to the uniqueness of the Korean Peninsula’s biodiversity (Chung et al., 2023), and their unique genetic composition and ecological niche represent high value as natural resources. In addition, endemic plants contribute to global biodiversity beyond regional and national importance (Kim, 2004). However, endemic plants are highly vulnerable to extinction due to their ecological adaptation to narrow environmental conditions and triggering changes in regional biodiversity (Parmesan, 2006; Sheth and Angert, 2014). Manes et al. (2021) reported that endemic plants are more vulnerable to climate change impacts than common native and alien plant species in 273 biodiversity hotspots. Therefore, it is necessary to improve understanding of the geographical changes and vulnerabilities of endemic species under climate change crises to expand the country’s biodiversity conservation capacity.
Compared to the well-documented climate change sensitivity of island and high-elevation endemic plants (Korea National Arboretum, 2014; Nadeau and Urban, 2019; Koo and Kim, 2020; Kim et al., 2024), reports on the climate change sensitivity of species growing on peninsulas are challenging to find. Generally, the shift of species, which reflects the expansion or contraction of their geographical range, is a crucial response or adaptation to climate change. Due to their relatively limited habitat range and ecological adaptation, endemic plants are vulnerable because of their restricted dispersal ability, small population sizes, and low adaptability to environmental changes (Sheth and Angert, 2018). Unlike the Jutland Peninsula, where the southern part is connected to the mainland, the Italian Peninsula, the Florida Peninsula, and the Korean Peninsula, which are surrounded by seas to the south, are likely to experience changes in regional biodiversity due to the current rate of species migration and the influx of external species (particularly from lower latitudes) during the warming process. The southern region of the Korean Peninsula, surrounded by seas on the east, west, and south, and its numerous island ecosystems support various endemic plant species, giving it a high biodiversity uniqueness (Jung and Cho, 2020). Therefore, endemic plants that grow exclusively in the southern Korean Peninsula may respond sensitively to environmental changes, which has important implications for biodiversity and species conservation management.
Coreanomecon hylomeconoides (Hereafter refered as Coreanomecon) is a perennial Papaveraceae herb and a genus endemic to the Korean Peninsula (Nakai, 1935; Chung et al., 2017, 2023).
Coreanomecon is mainly found in Gyeongsangnam-do and Jeollanam-do and is sometimes considered a southern plant (Son et al., 2012). However, it has been observed in broad elevational ranges, such as Mt. Jirisan (1,915 m) and Mt. Baekunsan (1,222 m), so its geographical characteristics must be evaluated. Since Coreanomecon grows in a narrow geographical area in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula, it may react sensitively to climate change. In particular, during climate changes, which can be represented by global warming, the habitats of Coreanomecon, which are considered southern plants, may move to high-latitude, high-elevation regions. Alternatively, Coreanomecon may show vulnerability due to the narrow ecological niche of the endemic species. Therefore, a conservation biology approach to the climate change sensitivity of Coreanomecon as an endemic genus is needed (Son et al., 2012, 2013).
Despite the apparent limitations in estimating species’ climate change sensitivity through niche modeling (Araújo and Peterson, 2012; Gardner et al., 2019), Species Distribution Modelings (SDMs) is one of the most actively used critical tools for assessing the impacts of climate change on biodiversity by evaluating current and future habitat ranges (del Río et al., 2021; Amindin et al., 2024). These modeling techniques predict changes in species’ habitats and distribution ranges under specific scenarios, enabling the assessment of habitat loss and extinction risks due to climate change. In doing so, they provide essential foundational data for conservation management and the development of climate change response strategies (Warren et al., 2018; Liao et al., 2020).
This study aims to evaluate the geographical characteristics of Coreanomecon, changes in suitable habitats under climate change scenarios, geographical sensitivity, and alterations in biological interactions. This study would contribute to revealing the potential impacts of climate change on Coreanomecon’s geographical traits, thereby enhancing the ecological understanding of endemic plants on the Korean Peninsula and contributing to the expansion of conservation knowledge.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area
This study focused on South Korea (33°–38°N, 125°–131°E) (Fig. 1). The study area features diverse topography, providing a suitable environment for the growth of various plant species. It is bordered by China and North Korea to the north, the East Sea to the east, the Yellow Sea to the west, and the Korea Strait to the south, with a landscape that includes mountainous terrain, plains, and coastlines (Park, 2014). The Korean Peninsula exhibits characteristics of both continental and maritime climates, with the northern region experiencing a cold temperate climate and the southern region having a warm temperate climate, resulting in significant seasonal temperature variations (Park et al., 2019). Additionally, the complex geological structure and gentle terrain along the Baekdudaegan mountain range create conditions favorable for plant migration, as the boundary between mountainous and flat areas is indistinct (Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport, 2016).
Habitat and environmental data
The distribution points of Coreanomecon used for modeling were based on 100 specimen coordinates collected by the Korea National Arboretum, along with nine sites extracted from vegetation survey data between 2002 and 2023. The distribution of Coreanomecon was identified at 73 locations in Jeollanam-do, 29 locations in Busan, 4 in Jeollabuk-do, and 1 in Daegu. Coreanomecon is primarily distributed in the southern region and is mainly found at mid- to low-elevation altitudes below 1,000 meters (Fig. 1).
Environmental variables were considered for the current (1981–2010), near future (2011–2040), mid-future (2041–2070), and distant future (2071–2100). A total of 25 environmental variables were used for modeling, and all variables were used at a spatial resolution of 250 m (Table 1). The environmental variables consisted of 14 bioclimatic variables (bio2, bio3, bio4, bio13, bio14, bio15, gsp, gst, kg0, kg2, kg3, kg4, kg5, and npp) (CHELSA v.1.2; www.chelsa-climate.org) (Karger et al., 2017), 8 soil variables (bdod, cfvo, ocd, phh2o, sand, silt, soc, and wavg) (Soilgrids database; https://www.soilgrids.org), and 3 topographic variables (elev, rough, and srad) (NASA SRTM 90; https://www.cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov).
Niche modeling
Niche modeling used the biomod2 (Thuiller et al., 2009) package in R 4.3.0 (R Core Team, 2023) and built an ensemble model using six algorithms. The six applied algorithms are divided into three categories: three types of machine learning methods, Generalized Boosting Models (GBM) (Ridgeway, 1999), Random Forest (RF) (Breiman, 2001), and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) (Ripley, 2007), two types of regression methods, multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) (Friedman, 1991), and Generalized Additive Models (GAM) (Hastie, 2017), and one type of classification method, Classification Trees Analysis (CTA) (Breiman et al., 1984). The criteria for including an algorithm in an ensemble model were set to cases where the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) statistic value was 0.7 or higher (Ureta et al., 2022). The predictive power of individual models was verified using KAPPA (Cohen’s Kappa, Heidke skill score), true skill statistics (TSS), and ROC (Appendix 1).
The data used for model construction consisted of actual occurrence data for Coreanomecon and 1,000 randomly generated pseudo-absence points per model. Equal importance was assigned to the occurrence and pseudo-absence data for Coreanomecon. Only one occurrence point was randomly selected within a 2 km radius to reduce spatial autocorrelation among the data. For model development, 70% of the data was used as training data, while the remaining 30% was used as validation data. Internal cross-validation, including five repeated experiments for each model, was performed to enhance the robustness and accuracy of the model through algorithm selection and optimization.
Geographical change and climate change sensitivity
The biogeographical characteristics of Coreanomecon were evaluated by calculating its occurrence frequency within vegetation climate zones and phytogeographic regions. The biogeographical space of the Korean Peninsula is divided into three vegetation climate zones—northern temperate, central temperate, and southern temperate—excluding the subtropical zone, and four phytogeographic regions: cold temperate, cool temperate, warm temperate, and maritime warm temperate (Jung and Cho, 2020). The occurrence frequency of Coreanomecon was calculated using 109 distribution points compiled from specimen coordinates and vegetation surveys.
The geographical shifts (latitude, longitude, and elevation) of Coreanomecon were calculated using the generated current and scenario-based prediction maps. The suitable habitat range for Coreanomecon was defined as areas with a predicted occurrence probability of 90% or higher in the ensemble modeling results. The shifts in latitude, longitude, and elevation were calculated using the median values to minimize the influence of extreme values compared to the average (Rotenberry and Balasubramaniam, 2020). This process was applied consistently across the current 184 conditions and under three climate change scenarios: SSP1-2.6 (Sustainable development pathway with low emissions and strong environmental policies), SSP3-7.0 (Regional rivalry pathway with fragmented, uneven growth and high emissions), and SSP5-8.5 (Fossil-fueled development pathway focused on rapid economic growth with heavy reliance on fossil fuels, leading to excessive emissions).
The climate change sensitivity of Coreanomecon was calculated based on changes in its suitable habitat, specifically the increase or decrease in its range. Climate change sensitivity was calculated using the Range Change Index (RCI), which is defined as the net change in suitable habitat area divided by the current habitat area (km²) (Pélissié et al., 2022). A positive RCI indicates an expansion of Coreanomecon’s habitat, while a negative RCI indicates a contraction. For instance, an RCI of –100 means that a suitable habitat for Coreanomecon has completely disappeared within the study area. The formula for calculating sensitivity is provided below as Equation 1:
Niche overlap
The analysis of niche overlap changes for Coreanomecon was conducted using Schoener’s D (Schoener, 1968), utilizing SDM results for a total of 279 plant species. The target species included 123 endemic species, 73 northern species, 80 southern species, two species that are both northern and endemic and one species that is both southern and endemic (Appendix 2). Endemic species were included as they reflect the unique characteristics of the local ecosystem. In contrast, northern and southern species were included because they represent their respective regions’ ecological and geographical characteristics. All 279 species underwent the same SDMs procedure to generate their habitat distribution maps.
Schoener’s D is an index used to numerically assess the environmental niche overlap between two species by constructing an environmental space (Schoener, 1968). This index ranges from 0 to 1, where 0 indicates no overlap in the environmental tolerances of the two species, and 1 indicates identical environmental preferences (Warren et al., 2008; Pélissié et al., 2022). The environmental space represents the potential habitat of a species based on the environmental conditions it prefers, focusing on environmental factors rather than physical locations (Brown and Carnaval, 2019). This environmental space was constructed by combining statistical values of environmental variables (latitude, longitude, and elevation) with the RCI. Niche overlap calculations were performed based on environmental conditions within a 100 km radius at each location. They were analyzed for the current period and the final period (2071–2100) under three climate change scenarios (SSP1-2.6, SSP3-7.0, and SSP5-8.5). The analysis used the ‘Humboldt’ package (Brown and Carnaval, 2019) in R version 4.3.0 (R Core Team, 2023).
RESULTS
Phytogeographic attributes
Regarding vegetation climate zones of the Korean Peninsula, Coreanomecon was found most frequently in the southern temperate zone (65 occurrences, 59.6%), followed by the northern temperate zone (34 occurrences, 31.2%), and the central temperate zone (10 occurrences, 9.2%), with the southern temperate zone identified as the primary habitat (Fig. 2A). In terms of phytogeographic regions, Coreanomecon had the highest occurrence in the cool temperate (zone III) with 76 occurrences (69.7%), followed by the cold temperate (zone II) with 28 occurrences (25.7%), and the maritime warm temperate (zone IV) with 5 occurrences (4.6%) (Fig. 2B). On the other hand, Coreanomecon did not occur in the coastal warm temperate floristic zone (zone I).
Environmental predictor contribution to the model
The modeling results indicated that the topographical variable, surface solar radiation (srad, 17.0%), had the highest contribution. Among the bioclimatic variables, temperature seasonality (bio4, 16.3%) and cumulative precipitation during the growing season (gsp, 15.7%) showed high contributions as well (Table 1).
Changes in current and future habitat distribution
The current suitable habitat for Coreanomecon is found in the mountainous regions of Jeollanam-do and Gyeongsangnam-do, including Mt. Mudeungsan, Mt. Baekunsan, and Mt. Jirisan (Fig. 3A). By 2100 (2071–2100), it is predicted that the suitable habitat for Coreanomecon will decrease across all scenarios. In the SSP1-2.6, the suitable habitat is expected to remain only near Mt. Jirisan, while in SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5, the reduction in suitable habitat is predicted to be extremely severe (Fig. 3B–D). Particularly under the high emission scenario SSP5-8.5, Coreanomecon’s suitable habitat is expected to be completely lost during the 2071–2100 period.

Current and projected potential distribution of Coreanomecon hylomeconoides in South Korea for the final period (2071–2100) under different SSP scenarios. Current distribution (A), projected distribution under SSP1-2.6 (Sustainable development pathway) (B), SSP3-7.0 (Regional rivalry pathway) (C), and SSP5-8.5 (Fossil-fueled development pathway) (D).
Changes in geography and niche overlap
The latitude and longitude shift patterns for Coreanomecon tended to fluctuate, rising and falling across all scenarios (Fig. 4A, B). By the final period (2071–2100) of the SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios, the latitudinal center of Coreanomecon’s suitable habitat showed little to no change compared to the present, or even shifted slightly southward, while the longitudinal center moved westward. The median elevation of suitable habitats displayed a sharp upward trend across all scenarios (Fig. 4C).

Distributional changes of Coreanomecon hylomeconoides under SSP scenarios. A. The changes in latitude. B. The movements in longitude. C. The changes in elevation. These changes are analyzed SSP scenarios across four time periods (Current, 2011–2040, 2041– 2070, and 2071–2100). The analysis uses median values for the changes.
The RCI for Coreanomecon is predicted to decrease across all scenarios and periods (Fig. 5). By the final period (2071–2100), the RCI was lowest under SSP5-8.5 (–100%), followed by SSP3-7.0 (–99.9%) and SSP1-2.6 (–94.3%) (Fig. 5A). The changes in surface area also mirrored the trend of the RCI (Fig. 5B). The reduction in area was largest under SSP5-8.5 (–4,155 km2), followed by SSP3-7.0 (–4,151 km2), and SSP1-2.6 (–3,920 km2).

Sensitivity and distribution area changes of Coreanomecon hylomeconoides under SSP5-8.5. Panels (A) and (B) show the sensitivity and range change surface, respectively. The data is analyzed under SSP scenarios for three future periods (2011–2040, 2041–2070, and 2071–2100). Sensitivity is measured as the Range Change Index (RCI) in percentage, while the range change surface is presented in square kilometers.
In all scenarios, compared to the current period, the mean niche overlap of Coreanomecon shows a decreasing trend by the future period (2071–2100) (Fig. 6). In the current period, Coreanomecon exhibits niche overlap with 279 species, with an average niche overlap score of 0.15. Under SSP1-2.6, where 94.3% of the potential habitat is lost, niche overlap occurs with 235 species, but the mean overlap score drops significantly to 0.03. In SSP5-8.5, due to the complete loss of suitable habitat, no niche overlap occurs with other species.

Niche overlap changes of Coreanomecon hylomeconoides under different SSP scenarios. Schoener’s D values range from 0 (no overlap) to 1 (complete overlap). Overlap for the current period and the final period (2071–2100) under SSP1-2.6(A), SSP3-7.0 (B), and SSP5-8.5 (C).
Currently, the species with the highest niche overlap with Coreanomecon hylomeconoides are the endemic plant Fallopia koreana (D = 0.41), the high-elevation species Rhododendron sobayakiense (D = 0.33), and the southern species Salvia japonica (D = 0.33). Under the SSP1-2.6 scenario, as suitable habitats persist mainly in high-elevation areas, Abies koreana (D = 0.15), Allium thunbergii var. teretifolium (D = 0.14), and Euphrasia coreana (D = 0.13) show the highest niche overlap with Coreanomecon (Appendix 2).
DISCUSSION
Geography of Coreanomecon
Coreanomecon primarily occurs in the southern temperate vegetation climate zone and the warm temperate floristic zone. It is also found in high-elevation areas of Mt. Jirisan and Mt. Baegunsan (see Fig. 1). In terms of its distribution across vegetation climate zones, Coreanomecon does not follow a consistent pattern of increase, decrease, or bell-shaped distribution but is mainly concentrated in the southern and northern temperate zones. The U-shaped distribution of Coreanomecon in vegetation zones is fundamentally due to the limited area of the central temperate vegetation zone (with a warmth index between 82 and 100) in southern South Korea (Cho et al., 2020). Another possible explanation is that Coreanomecon may have expanded to higher altitudes during the postglacial hypsithermal interval. With subsequent climate cooling, the higher altitude populations and the rest of the population may become spatially isolated (Rahbek et al., 2019).
Surface solar radiation (srad), temperature seasonality (bio4), and cumulative precipitation during the growing season (gsp) were analyzed as important environmental variables in the SDMs for Coreanomecon. Species occurrence is influenced by a complex interaction of topographical and climatic factors (Gaston et al., 2005). Surface solar radiation is essential in plant distribution, especially in higher latitude regions. Coreanomecon is more abundant in mid- to high-elevation areas than in low-elevation regions (Fig. 1). Plants distributed in high-latitude or high-elevation areas tend to benefit from environments with abundant surface solar radiation, which supports their growth (Körner, 2003; Huang et al., 2021). The shift of Coreanomecon’s potential habitat to higher elevations under all climate change scenarios supports the correlation between increased surface solar radiation and suitable habitat for Coreanomecon (Figs. 3, 4).
In Coreanomecon SDMs, important environmental factors were temperature seasonality and accumulated precipitation during the growing season. Temperature seasonality in Korea increases along the latitude and elevation gradient (Lee et al., 2023), and spring precipitation, when plant growth begins, is high in the southern region (Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport, 2016). The occurrence data of Coreanomecon shown in Fig. 1 clearly show that the mountainous ecosystem in the southern region with lower temperature seasonality and high spring precipitation is a central habitat distribution. Meanwhile, Coreanomecon in mountainous areas mainly grows in moist sites in the central and lower parts of slopes or on gentle slopes and near valleys in high-altitude mountains. The significant environmental variables of Coreanomecon suggested by SDMs did not show results far from field observations and geographical knowledge.
Range shift and climate change sensitivity
According to climate change scenarios, the habitat of Coreanomecon is not expected to shift toward higher latitudes, and it is predicted that it will remain only in some high-elevation areas of its current distribution range. In SSP5-8.5, the habitat of Coreanomecon could completely disappear between 2071 and 2100, indicating severe climate change vulnerability. The migration of plant species to higher latitudes and higher elevation due to climate change is a representative phenomenon indicating habitat changes due to rising temperatures (Shugart et al., 2003; Lemmen and Warren, 2004; West and Gawith, 2005; Telwala et al., 2013; Couet et al., 2022). Endemic plants are vulnerable to extinction because they have narrow geographic ranges, small populations, low genetic diversity, and dependence on a stable and rarely changing environment (Işik, 2011; Orsenigo et al., 2018). Species with small populations, such as Coreanomecon, may be at greater risk of extinction due to climate change because their adaptability to environmental changes is limited (Jones and Diamond, 1976; Son et al., 2012, 2013). Coreanomecon, which follows the characteristics of endemic species that are sensitive to environmental changes due to its narrow range of growing conditions, is predicted to be a species that is highly vulnerable to climate change.
The SDM results for the current period predicted that the habitats of Coreanomecon were spatially connected and centered on Mt. Jirisan and Mt. Baekunsan, with relatively large habitats distributed to the outskirts (Fig. 1A). Except for SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5, where habitats were almost wholly lost, Coreanomecon habitats in the SSP1-2.6 could only remain in some mountains (e.g., Mt. Jirisan and Mt. Baekunsan) within the current distribution area, and most of them could disappear or be fragmented into tiny areas. Those predicted phenomena suggest that populations in the low- and mid-elevation mountains, the edge of Coreanomecon distribution, could disappear first. Coreanomecon may be more vulnerable to environmental changes because its edge populations have lower genetic diversity than those in the center (Son et al., 2013). The SDM results reflecting these climate change scenarios provide knowledge for designing field monitoring of species dynamics and selecting priority conservation populations. In particular, endemic plants such as Coreanomecon, which are at increased risk of extinction as climate change accelerates, may disappear even within protected areas such as Mt. Jirisan National Park, Mt. Mudeungsan National Park, and Mt. Wolchulsan National Park, requiring unique efforts for in-situ conservation.
Ecological niche overlap
In future climates, Coreanomecon is expected to show a decrease in the number and degree of overlap with plant species competing for its niche. In particular, Coreanomecon did not show niche overlap with other species in SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5. The habitat of Coreanomecon is expected to decrease significantly due to climate change, which may reduce the niche overlap between Coreanomecon and other plant species. The reduction in ecological niches and changes in the competitive environment may be significant factors undermining species’ survival under climate change scenarios (Pélissié et al., 2022). Since species with high niche overlap with Coreanomecon were found to be endemic in the current period and SSP1-2.6, some endemic plants may be able to maintain interactions with Coreanomecon or form new ecological relationships. These interactions may provide an environment for Coreanomecon to avoid extreme isolation and promote survival, but these interactions will likely disappear under the SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios, intensifying climate change. As a result, Coreanomecon may lose its position in the traditional biotic interaction network under climate change (Semenchuk et al., 2021).
Limitations of SDMs and extinction risk assessment
SDMs is used as an essential tool to predict changes in habitats of endemic plants under climate change scenarios and to establish adaptation and conservation strategies for climate change. However, it is crucial to stress the importance of field investigations. SDMs predicts habitat suitability based on current environmental conditions and species occurrence data, but it may not sufficiently reflect actual biological processes (e.g., species dispersal ability, adaptation, and interactions between species), so there are limitations in uncertainty and error estimation (Zurell et al., 2023). This limits the uniform application of modeling results to the relationship between habitat loss and extinction risk, and this relationship may not be the same for all species and may vary by species. In particular, field confirmation is essential to accurately evaluate environmental changes and species colonization, adaptation, and extinction due to climate change, and it is difficult to fully understand these changes with only the predicted SDM results (Kim et al., 2015; Qazi et al., 2022). Therefore, the results of SDMs should be used in conjunction with field investigations to complement them and establish accurate conservation strategies for climate change. Given these points, SDMs can be used as important evidence for the conservation of endemic plants, but it is important to clearly recognize and interpret the reliability and limitations of the predictions.
CONCLUSIONS
This study conducted SDMs using the occurrence data of Coreanomecon under various climate change scenarios. The results indicate that Coreanomecon is likely to shift to high-elevation areas, with a significant reduction in range size due to climate changes. Under the SSP5-8.5 scenario, the species is predicted to face complete extinction within 100 years, highlighting its vulnerability to climate changes. As an endemic species adapted to specific climatic and geographical conditions of Korea, Coreanomecon is particularly sensitive to environmental changes, with its suitable habitats expected to be severely reduced and fragmented. Consequently, Coreanomecon is at a significant risk of extinction without effective conservation efforts.
To prevent the extinction of Coreanomecon, targeted insitu conservation strategies are essential. Conservation efforts should prioritize protecting specific habitats within highelevation refugia identified by SDM results, such as those in Mt. Jirisan and Mt. Baekunsan. However, since Coreanomecon is at risk of disappearing even within protected areas, such as Mt. Jirisan National Park, Mt. Mudeungsan National Park, and Mt. Wolchulsan National Park, due to accelerating climate changes, conservation strategies should also include efforts to identify and protect other suitable habitats beyond the current refugia to provide greater security for the species. Additionally, assisted migration to newly identified suitable areas beyond the current range should be considered to enhance the species’ resilience and support a broader, more climate-resilient distribution. Implementing these strategies will be vital in ensuring the long-term survival of Coreanomecon in response to ongoing climate change.
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by Korean National Arboretum through project no. KNA1-2-43-23-1, KNA1-2-32-18-3, and KNA1-2-37-20-4.
Notes
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.