Interest in chum salmon(Oncorhynchus keta) biology I Korea has increased since the establishment of the Yangyang Inland Hatchery of the National Fisheries Research and Development Institute during mid 1980s. The enhancement program of chum salmon was expanded thereafter, so that chum salmon were transplanted 18 streams in the coast of the Korean Peninsula. However, ecological research on salmon species was very limited due to the lack of a research program. Though involvement in the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission (NPAFC) requires scientific investigation on salmon research of each member nation, no conspicuous increase in research funding was achieved in Korea. Oceanic environments have been rapidly altered by climate change during the last a few decades and ocean ecosystems including salmon populations will be modified by global warming. Special attention is needed for stocks near the southern boundary of distribution, such as Korean chum salmon. This special issue is the venue for reviewing ongoing researches in Korea, and we hope that this issue will be a big step toward active ecological research in Korea under changing environments.