Xintai Taiping Mountain

Xintai Taiping Mountain

The Taiping Mountain Nature Reserve is situated in the central Shandong mountainous region, within the Taiping Mountain range at the junction of southern Xintai and Pingyi. Its geographical coordinates are 117°37′13″ to 117°44′09″ east longitude and 35°42′12″ to 35°46′12″ north latitude. The total area of the reserve is 3,733.3 hectares (56,000 mu), covering the state-owned Taiping Mountain Forest Farm, Wendan Town, Dongdu Town, Yuejiazhuang Town, and Fangcheng Town. The reserve is divided into three functional zones: the core zone (1,303.0 hectares, accounting for 34.9% of the total area), the buffer zone (1,251.9 hectares, 33.5%), and the experimental zone (1,178.4 hectares, 31.6%).

The Xintai Taiping Mountain Provincial Nature Reserve was established in December 2009 as a sub-county level institution, with an approved staffing of 20 personnel. Currently, there are 13 staff members, including 6 master's degree holders, 6 bachelor's degree holders, and 1 college diploma holder. It has four departments. The affiliated state-owned Taiping Mountain Forest Farm currently employs 98 staff members.

The reserve currently has a forest area of 3,699.0 hectares, most of which consists of state-level key ecological public welfare forests that have received ecological benefit subsidies. Taiping Mountain boasts rich biodiversity and is known as a “treasure trove of plants.” It is a relatively well-preserved nature reserve in central and southern Shandong, primarily protecting the Korean pine forest type. The reserve is home to 780 plant species and 928 animal species. It not only contains the best-developed and most intact Korean pine forest (formation) in Xintai, covering 3,020.5 hectares, but also dense pure or mixed forests formed by species such as Chinese pine, Masson pine, black pine, black locust, oak, walnut, chestnut, lilac, forsythia, and wild azalea. Through long-term natural succession, these have gradually formed a stable and rationally structured forest ecosystem, playing a vital role in soil and water conservation and water source protection.

The reserve features abundant plant species, including 675 species (39 varieties, 3 forms, 4 subspecies) of wild vascular plants from 107 families and 380 genera, accounting for 72.8% of Shandong’s wild vascular plant families, 59.7% of genera, and 42.2% of species. There are 661 species (39 varieties, 3 forms, 4 subspecies) of wild seed plants from 97 families and 368 genera, representing 78.9% of Shandong’s seed plant families, 61.6% of genera, and 44.1% of species. The vegetation types in the reserve include coniferous forest, broad-leaved forest, shrubland, and shrub-grassland, further divided into 11 formations: Korean pine forest, black pine forest, Chinese pine forest, oak forest, black locust forest, black poplar forest, walnut forest, chestnut forest, Spiraea shrubland, Vitex shrubland, and Miscanthus shrub-grassland. The Korean pine forest includes three sub-formations: pure Korean pine forest, Korean pine-oak mixed forest, and Korean pine-black locust mixed forest. There are 2 species of national Class I protected plants, both cultivated: Ginkgo and Metasequoia. There are 2 species of national Class II protected plants: wild soybean and Chinese zoyzia. There are 6 endemic Chinese plant species, 4 endemic to Shandong, 3 listed in the CITES Appendices, 4 in the China Red Data Book of Rare and Endangered Plants, and 16 classified as “rare and endangered plants of Shandong.”

According to China’s animal geographical zoning, the Taiping Mountain Nature Reserve belongs to the Palearctic Realm, North China Region, and Huang-Huai Plain Subregion. Its ecological community is part of the farmland animal group in the warm temperate dry farming zone, as well as the temperate forest–forest steppe animal group. Based on Shandong’s terrain, landforms, soil, vegetation, and climatic conditions, the distribution of vertebrates—especially terrestrial vertebrates—is regionally specific. The terrestrial vertebrates of Shandong are divided into four zoogeographic districts, with the Xintai Taiping Mountain Provincial Nature Reserve falling under the “central and southern Shandong mountainous and hilly district.” Research indicates that the reserve records 928 species of major wildlife across 6 classes, 41 orders, 200 families, with insects being the most numerous in both variety and quantity. There are 3 species of national Class I protected wildlife, all birds; 17 species of national Class II protected wildlife, also all birds; 32 species of key protected wildlife in Shandong, including 2 amphibians, 23 birds, and 7 mammals; 24 species protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), including 19 birds and 5 mammals; 74 bird species protected under the China–Japan Migratory Bird Agreement; and 14 bird species protected under the China–Australia Migratory Bird Agreement.

All runoff within the reserve flows into the Chaiwen River, then into the Dawen River, eventually feeding into the Dongping Lake—one of the main regulating reservoirs of the Eastern Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. Therefore, the construction of the reserve plays a significant role in protecting the water quality of Dongping Lake.

The reserve features dense forests, abundant species, stable vegetation communities, and an ecosystem that has long maintained dynamic equilibrium. Its biodiversity holds high value for protection and utilization, including direct use, as well as ecological, scientific, and aesthetic values. Additionally, it possesses immeasurable intrinsic and potential value, such as the conservation of species gene pools.

The reserve offers diverse ecosystems, beautiful natural scenery, picturesque landscapes, ancient cultural charm, and simple folk customs. The blue sky, clear waters, unique rocks, steep cliffs, forests, and birds blend harmoniously, making it highly valuable for eco-tourism development. Within the reserve, there are 73 peaks over 400 meters above sea level, with the main peak, Taipingding, reaching 813.6 meters. The mountain features 99 valleys, each with its own distinctive natural scenery. On the cliffs, uniquely shaped pines stand proudly, vines hang down, streams babble, and the sound of pine waves fills the air. It serves as a natural green barrier along the southern border of Xintai.

In its conservation management, the reserve strictly limits activities in the core zone to authorized scientific observation only, enforcing absolute protection. The buffer zone is mainly used for scientific research. The experimental zone permits various scientific experiments, teaching internships, field visits, as well as the domestication and breeding of wildlife and plants.