Yushan National Park

Yushan National Park
Yushan (Mount Jade) is Taiwan's tallest mountain at 3,952m (12,966 ft)
Location of Yushan National Park
Location	Nantou County, Taiwan
Nearest city	Shuili
Coordinates	23°28′12″N 120°57′26.16″E
Area	103,121 ha (398.15 sq mi)
Established	April 10, 1985
Visitors	1,349,281 (in 2005)

Yushan National Park (Chinese: 玉山たまやま國家こっか公園こうえん; pinyin: Yù Shān Gúojiā Gōngyuán) is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan and was named after the summit Yushan, the highest peak of the park. The park covers a total area of 103,121 hectares that includes large sections of the Central Mountain Range. The park contains more than thirty peaks over 3,000 metres (9,843 ft) in elevation, and two-thirds of the area within the park is above 2,000 metres (6,562 ft). The elevation difference in the park is 3,600 metres (11,811 ft), and there are many canyons, cliffs, and valleys.

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.

Geology

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 (大だい峭壁) — Great Precipice (23.4683339 120.9396649) is located 1.2 km before Paiyun Lodge (排はい雲山莊うんざんそう) 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 (八はち通關つうかん)
• Fuzi Cliff (父子ふし斷崖だんがい) and Guanshan Cliff (關山せきやま斷崖だんがい)

The Southern Cross-Island Highway and the Yushan Scenic Highway both offer countless opportunities to witness the area's special geological features.

Hydrology

Yushan is an important watershed of main river systems in central, southern, and eastern Taiwan. It is the water sources of the Zhuoshui River (濁水だくすい溪けい), Kaoping River (高こう屏へい溪けい), and Siouguluan River (秀しゅう姑しゅうと巒溪). The Chenyoulan (陳ちん有ゆう蘭らん溪けい), Jyunda (郡ぐん大溪おおたに), Nanzaisian (楠くすのき梓あずさ仙せん溪けい), Laonong (荖濃溪けい), and Lekuleku (拉ひしげ庫こ拉ひしげ庫こ溪けい) rivers are all young rivers from Yushan with V-shaped river beds. Jinmentong cliffs (金かね門もん峒斷崖だんがい) is a unique landmark along the Chenyoulan River (陳ちん有ゆう蘭らん溪けい). It was formed when Chenyoulan River (陳ちん有ゆう蘭らん溪けい) cut through land traversed by a fault line, and it showcases one of the best examples of headway erosion. Jinmentong cliffs (金かね門もん峒斷崖だんがい), Yunlong Waterfall (雲龍うんりゅう瀑布ばくふ) and Yinyu Waterfall (乙女おとめ瀑布ばくふ; also known as 七なな絲いと瀑布ばくふ) are some popular scenic points in the park.

Alpine lakes such as Dashueiku (大水おおみず窟くつ), Tafen Pond (塔とう芬池), Jiaming Lake (嘉明よしあき湖こ), and Tienchih (天池あまいけ) are formed from rain and melting snows in the shadows of surrounding mountain peaks. These lakes provide both visitors and animals precious water from the mountains. However, the ecosystem around them is fragile and needs further protection.

Flora

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.

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 小しょう红栲 and Lithocarpus amygdalifolius 杏あんず叶かのう柯. The ground layer plants are also plentiful and include ferns and bracken.
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 (台湾たいわん扁ひらた柏かしわ), Taiwan cryptomerioides Hayata, Chunninghamia konishii Hayata and Pseudotsuga wilsoniana Hayata;and the deciduous tree by Acer morrisonensis Hayata and Acer serriulatum Hayata. Chamaecyparis formosensis and Chamaecypairs obtusa var. formosana are commonly called cypress.
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 (高山たかやま沙すな參さん),Leontopodium microphyllum Hayata, Sedum morrisonensis and Gentiana arisanensis Hayata, give rise to colorful flowers in this area,

Fauna

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:

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.

The National Park is an important nesting ground for the Taiwanese population of Mountain hawk-eagle.

Cultural heritage

Prehistoric relics, such as stone tools and pottery, found in the Wangshiang (望鄉ぼうきょう) and Dongpu (Tungpu;東ひがし埔) areas, provide evidence of early human occupation. The Bunun (布ぬの農のう), an aboriginal tribe, presently inhabits the villages of Dongpu (Tungpu;東ひがし埔) and Meishan (梅山うめやま). They emigrated from the coastal plains to the mountains some 300 years ago. Another tribal people, Tsou, who live in the west of the park, have been largely assimilated by the Bunun. Displacement of aboriginals by settlers occurred during the Qing dynasty with the construction of the Batongguan Trail in 1875 for defense purposes. Some stone steps, walls and guard-posts are the remains from that past.

Eco-tourism

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:

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:

• Tataka Visitor Center
• Nanan Visitor Center
• Meishan Visitor Center

Pictures

• 
  Laonung River at the northeastern side of Yushan
• 
  Sea of clouds near Yushan
• 
  Sea of clouds on Yushan Trail
• 
  Sea of clouds near Tatajia Anbu on Yushan Trail
• 
  Sun rise at Yushan
• 
  On top of the world
• 
  Yushan Range, eastern side view

See also

• Taiwan
• Yushan
• Yushan Range
• List of mountains in Taiwan
• List of islands by highest point

External links

• Official website