Central Mountain Range

The Central Mountain Range is the principal mountain range on Taiwan Island. It runs from the north of the island to the south. Due to this separation, connecting between the west and east is not very convenient. The tallest peak of the range is Xiuguluan Mountain, 3,860 m (12,664 ft).

'Ta-shan' redirects here. For other uses, see Dashan.
Central Mountain Range
Chungyang Range
Central Mountain Range
Highest point
PeakXiuguluan Mountain
Elevation3,860 m (12,660 ft)
Coordinates23°11′N 120°54′E 
Naming
Native name中央山脈  (Chinese)
Geography
The location of Central Mountain Range
LocationTaiwan
Geology
Mountain typeMountain range
Central Mountain Range
Traditional Chinese中央山脈
Simplified Chinese中央山脉
Former names
Ta-shan
Chinese大山
Literal meaningBig Mountains

Names

"Central Range" or "Central Mountain Range" is a calque of the range's Chinese name, the Zhōngyāng Shānmài or Shānmò. It is also sometimes simply called the Zhongyang or Chungyang Range in English.

During the Qing Dynasty, the range was known as the Ta-shan,[1] from the Wade-Giles romanization of the Chinese name Dàshān, meaning "Big Mountains".

Geography

In a broad sense, Central Mountain Range includes its conjoint ranges such as Xueshan Range and Yushan Range; thus the tallest peak of Central Mountain Range in this sense is Yushan (Jade Mountain/Mount Morrison), 3,952 m (12,966 ft), and the second tallest peak is Xueshan (Snow Mountain), 3,886 m (12,749 ft).

Ecology

The Central Range lies within the Taiwan subtropical evergreen forests ecoregion, and the composition of the forest varies with elevation. The coastal plains and lower elevations are covered by evergreen laurel-Castanopsis forests dominated by Cryptocarya chinensis and Castanopsis hystrix with scattered stands of the subtropical pine Pinus massoniana. As elevation increases, the evergreen broadleaf trees are gradually replaced by deciduous broadleaf trees and conifers. At higher elevations, Cyclobalanopsis glauca replaces laurel and Castanopsis as the dominant tree.

Above 3,000 m (9,840 ft), deciduous broadleaf trees like Formosan Alder (Alnus formosana) and maple (Acer spp.) mix with Taiwan Hemlock (Tsuga chinensis). At the highest elevations, subalpine forests are dominated by conifers, including Taiwan hemlock (Tsuga chinensis), Taiwan spruce (Picea morrisonicola), and Taiwan fir (Abies kawakamii).

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See also

References

Citations
  1. EB (1879), p. 415.

Bibliography
  • "Formosa" , Encyclopaedia Britannica, 9th ed., Vol. IX, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1879, pp. 415–17.
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