Special Exhibition of the National Institute of Ecology 'A STORY OF THE KOREAN DMZ ECOSYSTEM' Biological distribution in the DMZ area

The Korean War that broke out on June 25, 1950 came to a ceasefire on July 27, 1953, leaving numberless scars. The truce space of DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) between South Korea and North Korea has become a valuable treasury of ecosystem in the world for almost 70 years. The special exhibition of the National Institute of Ecology illustrates the ecology of the DMZ area as a land of lives. It is an opportunity to be reminded of the significance of peace realized by the natural ecosystem, overcoming the hurts of the war.

A survey of the DMZ area reveals a total of 6,168 species of wildlife in 8 categories such as plants, mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles, terrestrial insects, freshwater fishes, benthic macroinvertebrates, spiders, and etc. In particular, 102 out of 267 species of Korean wildlife in danger of extinction (38%) inhabit the DMZ.