Taxillus tsaii S. T. Chiu 1996

When Dr. Shau-Ting Chiu of the National Museum of Natural Science investigated the unique living strategy of mistletoes, she found that the studied materials were unique to Taiwan and different from those of neighboring South China regions. After comparisons with herbarial specimens and field studies, the Lienhuachih mistletoe, Taxillus tsaii, was described as a new endemic species. The finding of this species may encourage extensive and in-depth research on Taiwan’s unique features researches in the relationships among organisms and applications of natural resources in herbal medicine. The holotype and one isotype of the new species are deposited in this museum which serve as important identification evidence for species.