Abstract

This study aims to understand wetland distribution and type-specific classification features with a focus on Tumen River downstream in China by adjusting and improving the classification system used in Korea with a reference to international wetland classification systems and their criteria & methods. In this study, wetland types were determined based on hydrology, vegetation, and soil conditions, which are the most basic elements of wetlands. Also, topography analytical map, vegetation analytical map, and soil analytical map for wetland classification were developed and used based on currently available topography map, vegetation map, and soil map. In addition, codes were defined based on topography, location, hydrology, and vegetation. The result shows that, in the Tumen River downstream, wetlands are often found near natural revetment and terrace land & river-bed lakes. In the discovered wetlands, riverine, lacustrine, and inland wetlands were mostly found at system level. Riparian and human-made wetlands were also identified. At a sub-system level, perennial and seasonal wetlands were found to a similar degree. At a class level, perennial open water, herbal plants, and shrubs were mostly found and sandy plain, hydrophytes, and forest tree types were also observed. An overall detailed classification shows that a total of 17 wetland types were found and a large distribution of sand dunes and river-bed lakes, which are scarce in Northeast Asia, indicates that other rare wetland types such as palustrine seasonal sand plain wetland and lacustrine seasonal sand plain wetland may be discovered.

Keywords

• Wetland type classification;
• classification features;
• Tumen River downstream