New docuseries showcases Taiwan's natural environment

By ECCT staff writers

TaiwanPlus has launched a new documentary series, showcasing Taiwan’s natural environment. Dubbed “Formosa Forevermore”, the series of short episodes show off Taiwan’s impressive natural environment through the lenses of internationally renowned videographers Chen Pei-kun and Liu Yamm-ming. In collaboration with the I-Mei Environmental Protection Foundation and the Ministry of Culture, the series was produced under the guidance of human rights activist Yang Sen-hong, who also served as the producer and curator of this series.

The series has two main themes, one focusing on Taiwan’s wild birds and the other on the stars visible from Taiwan. The short three-and-a-half-minute episode, “Wild Birds – Swinhoe’s Pheasant” shows the intricate mating dance moves of the male bird and tells the story of how the indigenous pheasant got its name from Robert Swinhoe, British naturalist and then British Consul in Formosa in the 1860s. Swinhoe first introduced the bird to the west and brought some live birds to the UK, where they were successfully bred. A century later, when numbers in Taiwan were declining due to hunting and habitat destruction, the UK sent 15 pairs of Swinhoes back to Taiwan. This, together with greater environmental awareness and protection in Taiwan, has helped to restore their numbers since then.