Tteumbugi

Basic information

Designation

Natural Monument No.446

Category

동식물

Designated year

2005

Location

., 기타—

Coordinates

37.530143, 126.856947Kakao address conversion

This English description was machine-translated and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the original Korean text for details.

The Watercock (Gallicrex cinerea) was a common summer bird before 1970 but has significantly declined in recent years to become rare. It primarily winters in Southeast Asia including Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, and Japan, arriving in summer to China and Korea. In Korea, it has recently been confirmed at Cheonsu Bay, Ansan Reed Wetland, and the Nakdong River estuary. It is a typical representative bird of traditional Korean rural areas and has cultural significance close to Korean hearts. Males have a red frontal shield protruding from the forehead to the crown with black eyes. The crown, back of the head, and back of the neck are blue-black tinged with light blue-gray on feather edges. The chest, belly, and sides are blue-black tinged with white on feather edges, and the tail is black with light brown-white tinged feather edges. Body length is approximately 40cm. Females are smaller than males, lacking the red frontal shield, with brown eyes. The body is yellowish-brown with dark brown spots on the back and wings. Body length is approximately 33cm. In the morning and evening, it moves between rice fields and paddy ridges, but during the day it inhabits wetlands and forests near water or surrounding shrubs. The breeding season is from June to July with typically 3-5 eggs per clutch. Diet consists of insects, snails, and seeds of aquatic plants. Before the 1980s, it was a common species in rice paddies and wetlands, but as economic growth and industrialization progressed afterward, populations declined sharply due to habitat loss and degradation. Given the anticipated continued decline, it is designated and protected as a natural monument.

Location