- · Grid units represent actual meters (m); human and animals are drawn to the exact same scale with original silhouette aspect ratios preserved.
- · When a size range is recorded (e.g. 1–1.6m), the lower bound is used for scale comparison.
- · Korean bitterling silhouette: PhyloPic — Carlos Cano-Barbacil · CC0 1.0 (Luciobarbus graellsii)
- · Human silhouette: PhyloPic — NASA · Public Domain Mark 1.0
Korean bitterling
Tanakia signifer (Korean bitterling · Korean bitterling)
Not Evaluated (NE) on the IUCN Red List yet.
🇰🇷 Class II endangered wildlife (Korea)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 A body length of 5–7 cm is about the length of two or three Korean 500-won coins (about 2.65 cm in diameter each) placed side by side (Comparison).
- 💡 Because it lays its eggs inside freshwater mussels, this fish cannot reproduce if the mussels on the river bottom disappear.
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The Korean bitterling is a small bitterling living in rivers flowing into the Yellow Sea and is an endemic species found only on the Korean Peninsula.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
Its body is laterally flattened and deep, with one pair of barbels around the mouth. In the breeding season, the margin of the male's caudal fin turns deep yellow and tubercles appear on the snout.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It is an omnivore that eats both animal and plant matter, feeding heavily on attached algae. In April and May, it lays eggs inside the gills of Gotchedudeureokjogae (a Korean freshwater mussel name) and Jageunmaljogae (a Korean freshwater mussel name).
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
It is a Class II endangered wildlife (Korea) species and a Korean endemic that in South Korea lives in the Han River system. It is heavily affected when host mussels decline.
📚 Sources & References
- • 멸종위기 야생생물 Ⅱ급 — 국가생물종목록(국립생물자원관) ktsn 120000057539 — https://species.nibr.go.kr/home/mainHome.do?cont_link=009&subMenu=009002&contCd=009002&ktsn=120000057539
- • IUCN Red List: not evaluated (NE) — cross-checked with the Wikidata conservation-status entry
- • Korean protection status: Class II endangered wildlife (Korea)
- • catalogueoflife.org — 54NP5
- • 국가생물종목록(국립생물자원관) ktsn 120000057539 — https://species.nibr.go.kr/home/mainHome.do?cont_link=009&subMenu=009002&contCd=009002&ktsn=120000057539
- • wikidata.org — Q28532779
- • species.nibr.go.kr — list
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Carlos Cano-Barbacil · CC0 1.0 (Related taxon silhouette — Luciobarbus graellsii)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.