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Mt. Nanhutashan is located at the north-eastorn Taiwan and the northern tip of the Central Mountain Range. The main peak, as hish 3740 meters, is a femous mountain in mountaineering and alpine plant collection. The alpine vegetations of this area are mainly distributed over the highest peneplane near the main peak of Mt. Nanhutashan. The major physignomies ara low shrubs and meadows. The habitats are characterized by low temperature, severe prevailing wind, high moisture, with abundant rainfall and snowball in the winter. Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) has been used to seek three ordination axes of the samples and species to represent the variation directions of plant communities. Using linear correlation, sin environmental factors were tested to find out the correlated factors affecting vegetation variation. As a result, the stoniness of soil and the altitude were found to be significant factors. Basing on the first axes of stand and species ordinations, the resultant matrix was locally rearranged with reference to other axes. This yields a final table for classification. The vegetations of this area were thus classified into six types:
A. Lycopodium clavatum--Yushania niitakayamnensis Type
B. Orchis kiraishiensis--Juniperus squamata var. morrisonicla Type
C. Anaphalis nepalensis Type
D. Euphrasia transmorrisonens is--Salix taiwanalpina Type
E. Artemisia niitakayamensis Type
F. Epilobium nankotaizanensis Type
Among these types, the Lycopodium clavatum--Yushania niitakaya-mensis Type and Orchis kiraishiensis--Juniperus squamat var. morrisonicola Type are located at the lower stoniness nabitats. The Epilo bium nankotaizanensis Type is located at the intermediate stoniness habitats and the Anaphalis nepalensis Type. Euphrasia transmorrisonensis─Salix taiwanalpina Type as well as Artemisia niitakayamensis Type occur on the highest stoniness habitats.
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