Title : The Nature of Dokdo
Stamp Serial#
 2358
KPC#
 C-1824 
StanGib#
 2737 
Scott#
 2137b 
Date of Issue
 01/16/2004
Quantity
 560,000 
Denomination
 190 won 
Design
 Aster spathulifolius Maxim.
var. oharai (Nakai) Y. Lee, 
Original
Painting
 Lee, Bok-sik 
Designer
 Lee, Gi-seog 
Image Area
 40mm x 30mm 
Perforation
 13 
Sheet Composition
 4 x 4
(four stamps setenant) 
Paper
 White unwatermarked
Printing process
and colors
 Photogravure, five colors 
Print
 Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation 
Description
Surrounded by the sea on three sides, the territorial reach of Korea includes more than 3,400 islands of all shapes and sizes. This series of stamps featuring the ecological system of the islands promotes public awareness of the significance of preserving these islands. Introduced in the first of the series is the nature of Dokdo Island.

Making their home on the island of Dokdo are some 50 species of plants including Pinus thunbergii Parlatore, Euonymus japonicus Thunberg, Farfugium japonicum (Linn ) Kitamura, Aster spathulifolius Maxim. var. oharai (Nakai) Y. Lee, Calystegia soldanella R. Brown, Dianthus superbus Linn var. longicalycinus (Maxim.) Williams, Tetragonia tetragonoides (Pall.) O. Kuntze, Cyrtomium falcatum (Linn ) Presl, Portulaca oleracea Linn , Taraxacum mongolicum H. Mazz., Plantago asiatica Linn , Setaria viridis (Linn ) Beauv., Chenopodium album Linn var. centrorubrum Makino, Artemisia princeps Pampans. Most of these plants are short as an adaptation to withstand the gusty sea winds and the leaves are generally thick and covered with fine hairs for protection against the cold. The island's many steep slopes causes the rainfall to run off into the ocean quickly resulting in a deficiency of moisture and soil that is relatively poor in nutrients. Thus, the number and variety of wild plants on the island is limited. From May to June, Dokdo is covered with Calystegia soldanella R. Brown that bloom pink flowers while in September, light purplish flowers of Aster spathulifolius Maxim. var. oharai (Nakai) Y. Lee enrich the scenery of the island.

Every year from spring to summer, Black-tailed Gulls, Streaked Shearwaters and Swinhoe's Storm Petrels breed on the island. During the migration season, such migratory birds as Red-necked Phalaropes, Ospreys, Dusky Thrushes, and Gray-tailed Tattlers pass through the island. The breeding ground has been designated as Natural Monument No. 336 and is protected as the 'breeding site for the sea birds of Dokdo'. Black-tailed gulls, a permanent resident of Korea, which can be easily spotted on the seashores around the nation, flies to Dokdo every May. Streaked shearwaters and swinhoe's fork-tailed Petrels, both sea birds, lay one egg after digging a hole in the crevices of the rocks or on the soil on isolated islands of Korea. These summer migratory birds leave for Southeast Asia in the fall.