A Faunistic Study on Insect Diversity in Gyeongju National Park

This study on insects in Gyeongju National Park identified 1,062 species belonging to 16 orders and 157 families. Among the taxonomic groups, Lepidoptera had the highest number of species 563 (53.01%), followed by Hemiptera (150; 14.12%), Coleoptera (134; 12.62%), Diptera (115; 10.83%), Hymenoptera (45; 4.24%), Orthoptera (16; 1.51%), and Trichoptera (13; 1.22%). Tohamsan had the largest number of species (631), followed by Namsan (464), Gumisan (387), Danseoksan (344), Seoak (285), Daebon (69), Sogeumgang (52), and Hwarang (39). The dominant species was Arichanna melanaria with a dominance index of 0.064. The diversity index (H') was highest in Tohamsan District at 6.206, with all five major districts showing relatively high diversity indices above 5. In addition, the survey identified 21 species endemic to the Korean Peninsula, 150 species approved for overseas export, two climate-sensitive biological indicator species, and four invasive alien species. A total of 2,058 insect species have been recorded in Gyeongju National Park, including 435 new species identified in this study.