Yushan National Park
Yushan National Park | |
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![]() Yushan (Mount Jade) is Taiwan's tallest mountain at 3,952m (12,966 ft) | |
![]() Location of Yushan National Park | |
Location | Nantou County, ![]() |
Nearest city | Shuili |
Coordinates | 23°28′12″N 120°57′26.16″E / 23.47000°N 120.9572667°E |
Area | 103,121 ha (398.15 sq mi) |
Established | April 10, 1985 |
Visitors | 1,349,281 (in 2005) |
Yushan National Park (Chinese:
Because of its remote location and entry control, Yushan National Park is not among the most visited national parks in Taiwan. Even so, the park attracted 1,044,994 visitors in 2015.[3]
Geology
[edit]Taiwan, which owes its existence to the power of plate tectonics, remains a place of regular seismic activity. Examples of geological features such as fault lines, joints, and folding can be seen throughout Yushan National Park:
- Great Precipice (
大 峭壁) — Great Precipice (23.4683339 120.9396649) is located 1.2 km before Paiyun Lodge (排 雲山莊 ) on the Yushan Trail. A precipitous cliff with fossils of ancient marine species and a few wavy marks in the rock can still remind us of its oceanic past. - Scree slope at the foot of Main Peak
- Fault scarp in Laonong (荖濃) between Main Peak and Batongguan (
八 通關 ) - Fuzi Cliff (
父子 斷崖 ) and Guanshan Cliff (關山 斷崖 )
The Southern Cross-Island Highway and the Yushan Scenic Highway both offer countless opportunities to witness the area's special geological features.[4]
Hydrology
[edit]Yushan is an important watershed of main river systems in central, southern, and eastern Taiwan.[5] It is the water sources of the Zhuoshui River (
Alpine lakes such as Dashueiku (
Flora
[edit]Yushan National Park is well known for its diverse climate zones and rich biodiversity. The plants found in the park span from subtropical on its foothills to alpine at its summits.[4]
Differences in altitudes, precipitous cliffs, and plunging valleys in the Yushan National Park lend to the park highly unstable weather conditions. Temperatures can vary from warm to cold at the same time at places relatively close. While accounting for merely 3% of Taiwan's total land area, the park has half of Taiwan's native plant species growing within its boundaries. Surveys have found that there are 2,522 different kinds of plants in the park.
With increasing elevation, there are the following six vegetation zonations in the park:
Altitude | Characteristics | |
---|---|---|
Broadleaf Forest Zone | Below 1,800 metres (5,906 ft) | The broadleaved forest is mainly dominated by trees of the Lauraceae and Fagaceae and forms the mixed forest zone. The second tree layer is composed of members of the Fagaceae, such as Cyclobalanopsis morii, Castanopsis carlesii |
Chamaecyparis Zone | 1,800 metres (5,906 ft) — 2,500 metres (8,202 ft) | In this zone, it grows some precious Chamaecyparis pure forests. |
Tsuga Chinensis Zone | 2,500 metres (8,202 ft) — 3,500 metres (11,483 ft) | In this zone, the coniferous trees are represented by Chamaecyparis formosensis,Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana ( |
Abies Kawakamii Zone | About 3,530 metres (11,581 ft) | Groups of Abies kawakamii grow on the western slope of Yushan. |
Subalpine Shrub Zone | 3,500 metres (11,483 ft) — 3,800 metres (12,467 ft) | Dwarf plants, which grow prostrate and leeward, are the dominant vegetation types of this area. |
Alpine Herbaceous Zone | Above 3,800 metres (12,467 ft) | When summer comes, herbaceous plants, such as Adenophora uehatae Yamamoto ( |
Fauna
[edit]The park is home to a large variety of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and butterflies. Between the months of March and May, visitors have the chance to see processions of butterflies fluttering through mountain valleys. In the following table, it shows total different kinds of animals found in the park:[6]
Mammals | Reptiles | Amphibians | Insects | Birds | Fishes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
50 | 18 | 13 | 780 | 151 | 12 |
In the past, many of these species became endangered due to over-hunting; but with the establishment of the Yushan National Park, they are gradually making a comeback. Larger mammals such as the black bear, sambar deer, Taiwan macaque, and serows can sometimes be seen, and their call is often heard.[citation needed]
The National Park is an important nesting ground for the Taiwanese population of Mountain hawk-eagle.[7]
Cultural heritage
[edit]Prehistoric relics, such as stone tools and pottery, found in the Wangshiang (
Eco-tourism
[edit]To promote eco-tourism, the park has established protection laws and raised public awareness of the importance of nature conservation on one hand and provided public facilities for easy access on the other hand. Public facilities provided in the park include:[8]
Foot paths (metres) | Parking lots | Pedestrian protective rails (metres) | Suspension bridges | Rest rooms | Sewage treatment plants | Tourist centers | Training centers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
39,880 | 17 | 1,111 | 18 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
For public safety, a lot of bridges and wooden pathways have been installed on difficult terrain.
There are three visitor centers in the park:
Pictures
[edit]-
Laonung River at the northeastern side of Yushan
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Sea of clouds near Yushan
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Sea of clouds on Yushan Trail
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Sea of clouds near Tatajia Anbu on Yushan Trail
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Sun rise at Yushan
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On top of the world
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Yushan Range, eastern side view
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Taiwan's National Park Website. Archived May 12, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^
各 國家 公園 基本 資料 表 (PDF) (in Chinese). Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior, R.O.C.(Taiwan). June 6, 2014. Retrieved October 23, 2014.[permanent dead link] - ^ "
各 國家 公園 遊 憩 據點 遊客 人數 統計 表 " (PDF). National Parks of Taiwan. Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior. 2015-12-31. Retrieved 2016-08-29.[permanent dead link] - ^ a b Yushan National Park Website. Archived July 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Hydrology-Yushan National Park". Archived from the original on October 14, 2007. Retrieved September 5, 2009.
- ^ Survey of biodiversity in Taiwan's National Parks.
- ^ Pin-chuan, Liu; Madjar, Kayleigh (18 July 2021). "Footage of hawk eagles in Yushan gives opportunity". www.taipeitimes.com. Taipei Times. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Public Facilities in Taiwan's National Parks.
External links
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