The world-famous Wuyi Mountain Nature Reserve sits on the highest section of north Wuyi Mountain Range in Fujian Province. It is at the border section of the counties of Wuyi, Jiangyang, Guangze, Shaowu in Fujian Province, with east longitude of 117o27′- 117o51′ and north latitude of 27o33′- 27o54′. Its total area is 56,527 hectares, 95.3% of which are covered by forest. Established in 1979, the Reserve joined the International Man and Biosphere Reserve Network of UNESCO in 1986 as the biggest and the most comprehensive extant semi-subtropical forest system in Southeast China. Wuyi Mountain is not only famous for its surprisingly spectacular scenery but also for its rich wildlife resources, and therefore, Wuyi Mountain National Nature Reserve is called a rare species database and "Origin of Model Specimen".
Climate
The Reserve lies in the mid-subtropical zone. There are 34 mountain peaks in the Reserve with the height of 1,800 meters above sea level. They serve as natural protective screens to block cold air from the north in winter and warm air in summer and keep southeast monsoon from oceans. The typical weather in the area is misty all year round with ample rainfall. Abundant rainfall and warm, humid weather give it a typical moderate sub-tropical climate. In the Reserve the annual average temperature is between 8.5℃and 18℃, yearly average precipitation is 1,486-2,150 millimeters and annual average relative humidity is 78%-84%. On an average, there are 253-273 frost-free days and 120 foggy days in a year. With the increase of elevation, the period of sunshine is 21.3 hours longer and the precipitation increases by 44-45 millimeters every 100 meters.
Physical Features
Wuyi Mountain Nature Reserve lies in the main part of Wuyi Mountain Range, with an average elevation of over 1,200 meters. The main peak, Huanggangshan Peak, reaches 2,158 meters above sea level. It is the highest peak of the allnot only in Wuyi Mountain Range, but also in the entire southeastern area of the Chinese mainland. Wuyi Mountain Range has great disparity of altitude. For instance, in an area of 556.7 square kilometers, the highest point tops 2,158 meters while the lowest is only 300 meters above sea level. Most of the rocks in the Reserve are volcanic or granites. More than 10 strips of land are directly or indirectly connected with the ridge of Wuyi Mountain Range, and they, serving as thoroughfares for small air currents, are ancient ravines or formed by falling of faultage.
Plants
The Reserve preserves primitive forests with an area of over 20,000 hectares. Its vegetation types mainly include evergreen broadleaved forest, coniferous and broad-leaved transitional forest, evergreen and deciduous broadleaved mixed forest, coniferous forest, shrubs and bamboo forest. There are nearly 4,000 plant species in the Reserve, 19 of which such as ginkgo, Chinese hemlock, Chinese tulip, China cypress and ornament plants are under the first-grade state protection. In addition, there are dozens of rare or local special plant species in Wuyi Mountain National Nature Reserve.
Animals
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| wild macaques |
The Reserve has a total of 475 species of vertebrate, of which there are 31 species of mammals, 73 species of birds, 35 species of amphibians and 40 species of fish. There are 57 species of wild animals under the state protection; 9 of them are under the first-grade state protection and the other 48 species under the second-grade state protection. South China tigers, which have not been seen for many years, clouded leopard, white pheasant, macaque, zibet, mandarin duck and pangolin, etc., are officially protected vertebrate and seldom seen elsewhere in the world. China has altogether 32 orders of insects while 31 orders of insects with around 5,000 species can be found in the Reserve. In addition, there are 64 species of snakes (17 of them are vipers), which account for one third of the total in China.
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