By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter

Global warming has caused the ``migration'' of broadleaf evergreen trees northward by up to 74 kilometers in 60 years.

The National Institute of Biological Resources (NIBR) reported Sunday that the average temperature on the Korean Peninsula rose 1.3 degrees Celsius during that time.

In 1941, few broadleaf evergreens were found outside North Jeolla Province, but now the trees can be found near Baengnyeong Island close to the Demilitarized Zone.

The trees have ``migrated'' northward from 14 kilometers ― Daecheong Island to Baengnyeong Island ― to a maximum 74 kilometers ― from Yeongam to Jeongeup.

The speed of timberline movement caused by global warming is estimated at some 5 to 150 kilometers per century when the average temperature rises 1 degree Celsius.

Climate change has affected fish species' habitats, primarily through rising water temperatures.

Alaskan Pollack, a favorite among Koreans used to be a representative product harvested from the East Sea. In the early 1980s, 160,000 tons of pollack were caught there annually. However, the catch dropped to below 1,000 tons per year after 2000, and in 2008, not even one ton of the fish was caught.

The East Sea Fisheries Research Institute is seeking to reintroduce the species through fish farming, and fingerlings at Goseong, known as the primary place to find the fish in Korea.

``Alaskan Pollack have nearly disappeared from Korean seas. Most pollack circulated in Korea are imported from Russia or caught in Russian waters,'' said a researcher at the National Fisheries Research and Development Institute.

The institute explained that other than climate change, population density, topographical changes and human interference can affect the shift of plants and animals. ``However, as all species of plant boundaries are moving northward, it seems that climate change is the largest reason for the movement,'' the institute said.

The NIBR also said the northward movement of broadleaf evergreens could trigger the extinction of indigenous species, and damage horticulture and fruit-growing operations as vermin will also move north.

meeyoo@koreatimes.co.kr