Shuangsi Forest: Biodiversity hotspot

The area’s most famous eco-tourist attraction is the Yellow Butterfly Valley (黃蝶翠谷), which is best visited in the early summer. If you’re visiting in fall or winter, your time might be better spent at Shuangsi’s small forestry reserve.

One often hears of mankind inadvertently exterminating rare species. Shuangsi Tropical Viviparous Forest (雙溪熱帶母雨林)is an exception - the unusual degree of biodiversity here is the result of human intervention.

Finding the 7.56-hectare forest is not difficult. As you’re driving through Meinong, look out for bilingual signs to the Yellow Butterfly Valley and the forest. When you come to the large and new Chaoyuan Temple (朝元寺), turn right. The forest is a few minutes’ down the road, on the right.

In botany, viviparous means “producing bulbs or seeds that germinate while still attached to the parent plant.” The sign at entrance bears a different Chinese name, however, “Shuangsi Tree Garden”(雙溪樹木園).

The reserve, now managed by the Council of Agriculture’s Forestry Bureau, was established in 1935 by the Japanese colonial authorities. They imported and nurtured 270 plant and tree species from different parts of Asia, Australia, and South America, in order to learn which species could thrive in Taiwan.

Nowadays, 96 different tree species grow in the forest; eleven are represented by a single specimen. In a few cases, these exotics and the only trees of their kind surviving anywhere in Taiwan.

According to a Chinese-language article on the Internet, the forest gets 2,000 to 3,000 millimeters of rain a year - more than double the amount Kaohsiung City gets, but similar to the annual average for Taiwan as a whole. The dry season lasts from October to April.

Many of the trees are labeled, with the scientific name being given alongside the Chinese name and the genus.

Among the more unusual trees here is Hydnocarpus anthelminthia, sometimes called Lukrabo. As recently as the 19th century, the seeds of this tree were used in China to treat syphilis and leprosy

There are also African Tulip Trees (Spathodea nilotica), Mountain Persimmons (Diospyros Montana) - which grow up to 25 meters high - and Parkia roxburgii, a tree that produces long edible beans that are a staple food in parts of India.

While none of the trees may be exceptional in terms of girth, many are very tall indeed. Visitors should also keep their eyes open for birds. According to one information board, among the species here are the rare Maroon Oriole, the colorful Muller’s Barbet, and the Black Madagascar Bulbul.

The forest is around 100 meters above sea level; a thorough exploration requires scrambling up a steep hillside. The main paths have been surfaced with concrete, but other stretches are no more than compacted soil. Erosion has exposed a great many tree roots; take care not to trip.

Depending on how interested you are in botany, you may want to allot between 20 minutes and two hours of your time in Meinong to this forest.

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