Geography and Climate

The Republic of China (ROC) is popularly known as “Taiwan” because the land over which the ROC government exercises sovereignty most importantly encompasses the large island of Taiwan, situated in the West Pacific between Japan and the Philippines. In addition, it comprises a number of smaller islands, most notably the archipelagoes of Penghu (the Pescadores), Kinmen, and Matsu. Together, Taiwan and its associated islands have a combined area of approximately 36,200 sq km (13,900 sq miles)—about the size of the Netherlands—and a population of 23 million, more populous than three-quarters of the world’s nations.

Taiwan proper, measuring nearly 400 km (245 miles) from north to south and around 145 km (90 miles) from east to west at its widest, has more than its share of natural splendor. Mountain ranges with many peaks reaching over 3,000 meters—including East Asia’s highest, Jade Mountain—and forested foothills occupy over half of its area. Other geographic features include dormant volcanoes, alluvial plateaus, coastal plains, mountain-walled basins, beaches, sand dunes, fantastically sculpted shoreline rock formations, and awesome marble-walled gorges.

The main island is uniquely blessed in the world for having within such a relatively small area a full range of climatic zones from tropical to temperate. This, in combination with its fertile soil and abundant rainfall, makes it an agricultural paradise, where virtually any kind of fruit or vegetable can be grown. It also makes the island a recreational paradise. In the winter, one can go skiing on the frigid slopes of Hehuan Mountain in Nantou County and then travel a mere 200 km (120 miles) to balmy Pingtung County to enjoy skin diving at coral reefs along the island’s southern tip.

The smaller islands, meanwhile, have their own unique natural features, such as the basaltic pillars on one of the Penghu Islands, and the marine hot springs along the shore of Green Island and Turtle Island.

At 3,952 meters, Yushan (Jade Mountain) is the highest peak in Asia east of the Himalayas. (Photo by Chen Fang-yi, courtesy of the Tourism Bureau)

Flora and Fauna

Taiwan’s tropical-to-temperate spectrum of climatic zones and contrasting topographies have endowed the island with a rich diversity of flora and fauna. Some 70 species of mammals, 500 species of birds (40 percent of which reside on the island all year round), over 90 species of reptiles, more than 30 species of amphibians, nearly 2,700 species of fish, and 18,000 identified species of insects (including some 400 butterfly species) are known to inhabit Taiwan. The abundant plant life in Taiwan includes 610 species of ferns, 28 species of gymnosperms, and 3,600 species of angiosperms.

To protect the ecosystems in which these plants and animals reside, the government has reserved 19 percent of the nation’s land area as part of a multitier system of protected areas, comprising 7 national parks, 19 nature preserves, 6 forest preserves, 17 wildlife refuges, and 32 wildlife habitats.

Perhaps the most famous Taiwanese species of fauna is the Formosan landlocked salmon—Oncorhynchus masou formosanum—the most southerly member of the Salmonidae family. It is believed to have become trapped in the frigid mountain waters of central Taiwan during the last Ice Age when ocean levels dropped dramatically and the salmon could no longer migrate back and forth between fresh water and salt water. Overfishing and pollution have damaged much of the salmon’s natural habitat, causing the distribution and population to shrink dramatically. In 1989, the Council of Agriculture listed the Formosan landlocked salmon as an endangered species in accordance with the Wildlife Conservation Act, and in 1997 the Taichung County government established the Formosan Landlocked Salmon Refuge in the upper reaches of the Dajia River in Shei-pa National Park.

National Parks 

Kenting National Park: http://www.ktnp.gov.tw 
Yushan (Jade Mountain) National Park: http://www.ysnp.gov.tw
Yangmingshan National Park: http://www.ymsnp.gov.tw
Taroko National Park: http://www.taroko.gov.tw
Shei-pa National Park: http://www.spnp.gov.tw 
Kinmen National Park: http://www.kmnp.gov.tw
Dongsha Marine National Park: http://dongsha.cpami.gov.tw