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Scientific name:	Keteleeria davidiana (Franch.) Beissner var. formosana (Hayata)

Features:

Keteleeria davidiana are large evergreen trees capable of growing up to 35m high with a diameter of 1.5m. Their bark is grayish-brown, irregularly fissured, and has the appearance of fish scales when peeling off. Their leaves are linear, flat, and acute, and are glossy and have midrib ridges on both sides. Male blossoms are cylindrical and tend to cluster at the end of twigs; cones are solitary, erect, cylindrical, and oblong, turning brown when mature; and seeds are winged, oval, and roughly 1cm long. The wood of the Keteleeria davidiana is quite oily and is often used for constructing buildings.

Habitat:

There are only two to three species of Keteleeria davidiana in the world, and these only occur in Taiwan and the Chinese mainland. Keteleeria davidiana (Franch.) Beissner var. formosana (Hayata) are endemic to Taiwan and quite rare, with only a few natural groves of them on the ridges and slopes at 400-700m elevations in the mountainous areas near Pinglin in northern Taiwan and Dawu in southern Taiwan. A precious tree protected by Taiwan law, Keteleeria davidiana are so few in number that they cannot even form a continuous distribution belt.