English II

Insects

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491 families, 4,658 genera, and 11,853 species of insects have been recorded in Korea, but scien- tists now estimate that these gures only take up 20% of the more than 50,000 insect species that inhabit the country. Of the species that have been recorded, species of Coleoptera and Lepidoptera order are the most abundant, comprising 26% and 

25%, respectively, followed by Hymenoptera and Hemiptera. Through systematic researches that have been carried out, 596 species of the Hemip- tera order have been recorded to inhabit Korea. Among these species, 75% come from the Pale- arctic region, 20% from the Oriental region, and only the remaining 5% are endemic species of 

Korea. 264 species of butter ies currently inhabit Korea, with over 80% from the Palearctic region and only 20% from the Oriental region.

The Ministry of Environment has designated 22 insect species as Endangered Wild Species, with 4 species, including Hipparchia autonoe, the black-veined white (Aporia crataegi), Polyphylla 

laticollis manchurica, and Callipogon relictus, under Class I, and 18 species, including the scar- let dwarf (Nannophya pygmaea), Bekko Tombo (Libellula Angelina), dung beetle (Copris triparti- tus), and Parnassius bremeri, under Class II. 

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