Literally, Guniujiang means in Chinese an ox descending from the sky. It is so named because a big rock on the peak resembles a big ox that has just landed from the sky. Straddling Qimen and Shitai Counties, the reserve covers an area of 30 square kilometers, with the Guniujiang Peak, which is the highest peak, rising 1727.6 meters high. It is one of the nature reserves of forest and wild life in China as well as an ideal place for making expedition trips. The reserve is of complex geological structure, with numerous cliffs, peaks, rocks of grotesque shapes, waterfalls, brooks and lakes. Sometimes, Buddhist halo with rainbow colors appears around the peaks, adding to the fascination of the mountain view. The natural vegetation is well preserved here, with distinct vertical distribution of plants. At the mountain top is growth of grass. Half way up the mountain are deciduous leaf trees and evergreen broadleaf trees, Rare species of trees and plants abound, such as Xiangguo tree, which is under priority state protection, large tracts of Yellow Mountain pine, Chinese catalpa, Wild Jujube tree, Nanmu wood, Qingqian willow, languo tree, Tenghuang sandalwood and cancer- resistant Sanjian fir as weI1 as a dozen species of azalea. The reserve is also a haven of wild animals where sika, summon antelope, black muntjac, cloud leopard, macaque, short-tailed monkeys, civet, otter, white cranes, pheasant with white neck and long tail-mandarin duck, pangolin and owls roam around.