The mountains mark the divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Yellow River systems, providing a natural boundary between North and South China and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on earth.

The northern side of the range is prone to hot weather, the rain shadow cast by the physical barrier of the mountains dictating that the land to the north has a semi-arid climate, and is consequently somewhat impoverished in regard to fertility and species diversity.

[2] The highest mountain in the range is Mount Taibai at 3,767 meters (12,359 ft), which is about 100 kilometers (62 mi) west of the ancient Chinese capital of Xi'an.

The low-elevation forests of the Qin foothills are dominated by temperate deciduous trees, like oaks (Quercus acutissima, Q. variabilis), elm (Ulmus spp.

Evergreen species of these low-elevation forests include broadleaf chinquapins (Castanopsis sclerophylla), ring-cupped oaks (Quercus glauca), and conifers, like Pinus massoniana.

[3] Plant and tree species native to the region include ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba—thought to be one of the oldest species of tree in the world), as well as Huashan or Armand pine (Pinus armandii), Huashan shen (Physochlaina infundibularis), Acer miaotaiense and Chinese fir.