Having hiked the Tatachia Trail over 1,000 times in 7 years, Yin Limin illustrates "Blush at Dawn"

"Blush at Dawn" features the rare national treasure bird, the Mikado Pheasant. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

The Mikado Pheasant was colloquially known as the "Imperial Pheasant" during the Japanese colonial period. Since Taiwan is no longer under the rule of the Japanese Emperor, it should be renamed the "Mikado Pheasant" to restore dignity to the people of Taiwan. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

The population of Formosan serows in the Tatachia area is considerable, with frequent sighting opportunities. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

"The wildlife in Tatachia has increased significantly over these 7 years!" Yin Limin, a contract researcher at the Yushan National Park Headquarters, has hiked the Tatachia Trail over a thousand times since 2010. Based on her firsthand observations, she launched the illustrated notebook "Blush at Dawn: Strolling with the Mikado Pheasant" at the Yushan National Park Headquarters on the 22nd, witnessing the grace and elegance of the "king of the mist" and the achievements of conservation efforts.

Yushan National Park Headquarters Director Tseng Wei-hong stated that this illustrated notebook by Yin Limin follows last year's "Tatachia Walking Series" — "Sitting and Watching the Serow" — and once again uses hand-drawn illustrations to allow readers a glimpse into the rich diversity of rare wildlife in the Tatachia region.

Yin Limin, a graduate of National Taiwan University’s Department of History, joined the Yushan National Park Headquarters in 1993. Her main research focused on the traditional culture and customs of the Bunun people in the national park areas, and her works have won multiple awards. Due to her interest in natural ecology and wildlife, and with her husband being the renowned ornithologist Professor Liu Liang-li, she was influenced to engage in observation and research.

In 2010, the Construction and Planning Agency assigned Hua Yu-ching, head of the Conservation Section at Yangmingshan National Park, and Yin Limin to attend training at Grand Canyon National Park in the United States, exploring the core values of national parks and learning to play the role of observers. After returning to Taiwan, Yin Limin applied what she learned by hiking and observing the Tatachia Trail every day after work, recording every detail.

The Tatachia Trail is approximately 15 kilometers long. By the time Yin Limin finished work, it was already close to evening, so she could only choose to hike half the trail, walking from 5 p.m. to around 7 p.m. In winter, she had to carry a flashlight.

She said that over the 7 years and more than 1,000 hikes, she often didn’t see a single wild animal in the first 2 years, but gradually saw more from 4 or 5 years ago. In the past 3 years, the numbers of Formosan serows and Mikado Pheasants have increased significantly, especially the Formosan serows — there was even a record of spotting 15 in a single hike. Perhaps due to the increase in serows, the yellow-throated marten, which preys specifically on them, has also become noticeably more visible in recent years.

Last year, Yin Limin first published "Sitting and Watching the Serow," and this year she presents her experiences observing the national treasure bird, the Mikado Pheasant, in the picture-book style notebook "Blush at Dawn." This bird was commonly called the "Imperial Pheasant" during the Japanese colonial period. Since Taiwan is no longer under the rule of the Japanese Emperor, it should be renamed the "Mikado Pheasant" to restore its own dignity.