The Taroko National Park Headquarters have succeed in saving a critically endangered flower, the golden spider lily, in the eastern Taiwan park, officials said Monday. The perennial, nicknamed dragon-claw by locals for the shape of the blossom, is considered 'the flower of Taroko Gorge' as the deep marble gorge is one fo the few places its eye-catching golden blooms can be seen, according to the headquarters. In addition to Taroko Gorge, the plant is also found on the northern coast of the island, on the Shinwulu cliffs of the South Cross-Island Highway, and in Kenting National Park in southern Taiwan, but only in small numbers, the officials said. The lily, which has the scientific name Lycoris aurea herb, has been listed critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, inferring that its global population will have fallen by 80 percent in 10 years, or three generations, based on actual or potential damage by human activity, the officials said, adding that they began efforts to recover the plant numbers on the Buluowan Terrace in 2001. The plant, which blooms in September and October, is poisonous, with the strongest toxicity in the bulb. If eaten, it can cause vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory and circulatory problems, shock and even death. 