Taiwan’s interior contains some of Earth’s most remarkable giant trees, with specimens exceeding 80 meters in height. Since 2014, a research team known as the ‘Taiwan tree seekers’ has systematically searched for, measured, and documented these extraordinary trees by combining expertise from professional climbers, ecologists, geologists, and remote sensing specialists.
Taiwan’s geography creates ideal conditions for giant tree growth. The island’s mountainous terrain features 258 peaks above 3,000 meters, with elevations supporting diverse plant environments from tropical rainforests to alpine tundra. Despite industrial logging between 1912 and 1991, approximately 60 percent of the island remains forested, with inaccessible steep areas preserving old-growth forests that logging operations could not reach. The Indigenous Rukai people refer to the massive Taiwania firs as ‘the tree that hits the moon.’
Early expeditions beginning in August 2014 focused on known giant tree locations, including the famous ‘Chilan Three Sisters.’ However, searching for additional giants among Taiwan’s estimated 950 million trees proved challenging using traditional ground surveys alone. The researchers partnered with remote sensing specialists and began employing LiDAR technology, an advanced 3D scanning method that uses laser pulses from aircraft to measure tree heights across vast forest areas.
Automated LiDAR analysis initially presented problems, with software incorrectly identifying 93 percent of candidate trees due to terrain irregularities and cliff formations. In 2020, the project expanded to include hundreds of citizen scientists who reviewed data and eliminated false candidates, ultimately producing the ‘Taiwan Giant Tree Map’ documenting 941 trees taller than 65 meters. This collaborative approach proved instrumental in identifying the ‘Heaven Sword of the Da’an River,’ officially recognized in 2023 as Taiwan and East Asia’s tallest tree at 84.1 meters.
Recent findings highlight these forests’ ecological significance. Research conducted in 2024 on the ‘Tao Tree’ valley revealed carbon density reaching 1,384.5 Mg/ha, placing Taiwan’s giant forests among Earth’s most carbon-dense ecosystems and comparable to celebrated old-growth forests worldwide. The discoveries revealed ‘temples of giants’—concentrated areas containing dozens of massive trees, including clusters where a single hectare contained 11 trees exceeding 65 meters, underscoring both the natural wonder and environmental importance of Taiwan’s hidden forest world.
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