| Central Mountain Range | |
|---|---|
| Chungyang Range | |
 | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Xiuguluan Mountain |
| Elevation | 3,860 m (12,660 ft) |
| Coordinates | 23°11′N120°54′E / 23.183°N 120.900°E /23.183; 120.900 |
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 310 km (190 mi) |
| Naming | |
| Native name | 中央山脈 (Chinese) |
| Geography | |
 The location of Central Mountain Range | |
| Location | Taiwan |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Mountain range |
| Central Mountain Range | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 中央山脈 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 中央山脉 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Former names | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ta-shan | |||||||||
| Chinese | 大山 | ||||||||
| Literal meaning | Big Mountains | ||||||||
| |||||||||
TheCentral Mountain Range is the principalmountain range onthe island of Taiwan. It runs from the north of the island to the south. It acts as a barrier between the east and west coasts, hindering travel. The tallest peak of the range isXiuguluan Mountain, 3,860 m (12,664 ft).
"Central Range" or "Central Mountain Range" is acalque of the range'sChinese name, theZhōngyāng Shānmài orShānmò. It is also sometimes simply called theZhongyang orChungyang Range in English.[citation needed]
During theQing Dynasty, the range was known as theTa-shan,[1] from theWade-Gilesromanization of the Chinese nameDàshān, meaning "Big Mountains".[citation needed]
In a broad sense, Central Mountain Range includes its conjoint ranges such asXueshan Range andYushan Range; thus the tallest peak of Central Mountain Range in this sense isYushan (Jade Mountain/Mount Morrison), 3,952 m (12,966 ft), and the second tallest peak isXueshan (Snow Mountain), 3,886 m (12,749 ft).[citation needed]
The Central Range lies within theTaiwan 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 byCryptocarya chinensis andCastanopsis hystrix with scattered stands of the subtropical pinePinus massoniana. As elevation increases, the evergreen broadleaf trees are gradually replaced by deciduous broadleaf trees andconifers. At higher elevations,Cyclobalanopsis glauca replaces laurel andCastanopsis as the dominant tree.[citation needed]
Above 3,000 m (9,840 ft), deciduous broadleaf trees likeFormosan alder(Alnus formosana) andmaple(Acer spp.) mix withTaiwan hemlock(Tsuga chinensis). At the highest elevations, subalpine forests are dominated by conifers, including Taiwan hemlock,Taiwan spruce (Picea morrisonicola), andTaiwan fir (Abies kawakamii).[citation needed]
| Mountain ranges |
|  |
|---|---|---|
| Plateaus and hill lands | ||
| Plains | ||
| Basins | ||
| Volcano groups | ||
* The place names listed above are mainly romanized asWade–Giles that used in most of academic articles. | ||