Disappeared from Sun Moon Lake for decades, the Shuishe Willow returns to Shuishe Sea

The Shuishe Willow is named after the former name of Sun Moon Lake, “Shuishe Sea,” but had vanished from the lakeside for over 30 years. On the 9th, the National Taiwan Park Headquarters collaborated with young farmers to bring the “Shuishe Willow back to Shuishe Sea.” (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

The plants in the foreground are Shuishe Willows, the lake surface is Shuishe Sea (Sun Moon Lake), and the background is Shuishe Mountain. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

The Shuishe Willow has golden-yellow flowers and is also called the Golden Willow. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

Leaves and fruits of the Shuishe Willow. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

Although the Shuishe Willow disappeared from the shores of Sun Moon Lake for decades, the upper reaches of the upstream water source behind the mountain still preserve old-growth Shuishe Willow trees in their pristine state, with notably thick trunks. (Photo by Shen Huisheng)

The “Shuishe Willow,” a rare and endemic plant to Taiwan discovered and named after the former place name by Japanese scholars around Sun Moon Lake in 1909, was once thought to have gone extinct at its original discovery site due to environmental changes. By chance, the National Taiwan Park Headquarters learned that a young farmer had successfully propagated the plant. On the 9th, they planted 80 eight-year-old Shuishe Willow trees in the Shuishe area, hoping to create a Golden imagery along the Shuishe bicycle path.

The Shuishe Willow has golden-yellow inflorescences and is also known as the “Golden Willow.” It is also called “Kusano’s Willow” after its discoverer, Kusano Shunsuke, and is a native endemic species of Taiwan.

In addition to the former “Shuishe Sea” (Sun Moon Lake), the Shuishe Willow has also been found in Yilan’s Mysterious Lake and Shuanglianpi, as well as in the mountainous areas of Dongyuan Village, Mudan Township, Pingtung. However, due to its limited habitat and extreme rarity, mature wild individuals have become scarce, and it was once assessed by the Forestry Bureau as being at the “Critically Endangered” level.

The Shuishe Willows around Sun Moon Lake disappeared about 30 years ago due to drastic environmental changes such as reservoir construction and rising water levels. People recall seeing its golden-yellow flower spikes in full bloom in winter, mostly from the 1980s. Taiwan Ecological Society Chairman Yang Guozhen and Academia Sinica researcher Huang Chaoqing once examined all the existing native willow trees around the lake and found that they were all water willows—no Shuishe Willows were found.

The batch of Shuishe Willows planted by the National Taiwan Park Headquarters on the 9th came from the Tou-shè Basin. After the 921 earthquake, researchers from the Academia Sinica’s Endemic Species Research Institute worked with local farmers in Yuchi Township to promote environmental awareness. During an ecology course, they discovered more than ten “unusually different willows” along the Tou-shè Drainage Channel, which were later identified as the ancient and community-closest Shuishe Willow group—the oldest in Taiwan.

Wang Shunyu, an intellectual of the mesozoic generation, soon returned from elsewhere, integrated local resources, and founded his own agricultural brand. In 2007 and 2009, he propagated Shuishe Willow seedlings through asexual reproduction. Shi Zonghong, director of the Puli Management Station of the Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration, recently contacted Wang Shunyu to discuss collaboration, making this restoration project possible.

The return of the Shuishe Willow to Shuishe brought joy and excitement to National Taiwan Park Headquarters Director Hong Weixin, Yuchi Township Farmers’ Association Chairman Liu Qihang, General Manager Wang Weiwen, and plant expert Huang Chaoqing. These eight-year-old trees are currently in bud and are expected to bloom into brilliant golden blossoms in about two months.