This mountain range was originally called "Grass Mountain" during the Qing Dynasty, in reference to Datun Mountain. Officials during this period were worried about thieves stealing sulfur from the rich sulfur deposits in the area so they would regularly set fire to the mountain. Thus, only grass and not trees could be seen. , Taiwan's first national park, was established on 27 December 1937. It was one of three national parks designated by Governor-General of TaiwanSeizō Kobayashi during Japanese rule. In 1950, President Chiang Kai-shek, renamed Grass Mountain to Yangmingshan, to commemorate the Ming Dynasty scholar Wang Yangming. In 1962, the then Taiwan Provincial Bureau of Public Works began to plan the Yangmingshan National Park. The initial planning area was 28,400 hectares, including Mount Kwan-in and the Tatun Volcano Group.
Landscape and geology
Different from the high mountain national parks, Yangmingshan National Park has a lower elevation. Even though mountain elevations range from only 200–1120 meters, beautiful landscapes such as ridges, valleys, lakes, waterfalls and basins are abundant. Andesite rocks make up most of the area's geology.
Xiaoyoukeng
Xiaoyoukeng is a post-volcanic geological landscape area located in the north of Taiwan in Yangmingshan National Park. at the northwestern foot of Seven Star Mountain. It is approximately 805 meters above sea level and is famed for the fumaroles, sulfur crystals, hot springs and spectacular 'landslide terrain' formed by post-volcanic activity. Hiking trails to Seven Star Mountain are accessible from the Xiaoyoukeng parking lot. The top of the trail is 1,120 meters above sea level, which is the highest peak of Taipei City. The Xiaoyoukeng trail can connect to Qixing Park, Menghuan Pond, and Lengshuikeng. The trail also connects to visitor center, Yangmingshan Second Parking Lot and the Yangmingshan Bus Station.
Flora and fauna
Due to the effects of post-volcanic activity and precipitation, soil in the region is highly acidic. With the influence of the northeast monsoon and the area's microclimates, winter temperatures are much lower than the surrounding areas. The above factors cause the vegetation to differ from those in other regions at the same latitude. Some medium and high altitude plants can be found here such as bird-lime tree and hairy Japanese maple. Vegetation groups can be divided into subtropical monsoon rain forests, temperate evergreen broadleaf forests and mountain ridge grasslands. There are 1360 species of vascular bundle plants in the region. Some of the common ones are red nanmu, large-leaved machilus, Formosan sweet gum, Taiwan cherry, Mori cleyera and dark spotted cherry. The most famous is Taiwan isoetes in Menghuan pond, an aquatic fern only found in Taiwan. Mt. Datun is one of the most well known places to see some of the 168 species of butterflies in northern Taiwan. The best time to view the butterflies is from May to August. The most common ones are from the families Papilionidae, Danainae and Nymphalidae. There are also 122 species of birds in the region. Semi-feral cattle are one of notable attractions in the area.
