[2] In foliage and cone morphology, Cathaya has been considered a member of the subfamily Laricoideae, closely related to Pseudotsuga and Larix,[5][3] but more recent genetic studies have suggested a closer relationship to Pinus and Picea in the subfamily Pinoideae.

Cathaya is confined to a limited area in southern China, in the provinces of Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan and southeast Sichuan.

The leaves are needle-like, 2.5–5.5 cm (1.0–2.2 in) long, have ciliate (hairy) margins when young, and grow around the stems in a spiral pattern.

[9] The extinct fossil species Cathaya loehri (Engelhardt & Kinkelin) Chun & Kuang is described from the Miocene and Pliocene of Germany and France;[3] other Cathaya fossils are known from the Miocene and Pliocene of eastern Siberia,[3] and from the early Pleistocene of southern Portugal.

[10] They are abundant in European brown coal deposits dating from between 10 and 30 million years ago.