Located in a tropical climatic zone, Orchid Island is subject to great heat and violent typhoons. As a result, most of their settlements face the sea with their backs to the mountains. The gentle slopes along the coast are dotted with the Tao's cave-like dwellings, which are warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
籠罩在熱帶海洋性氣候之下的蘭嶼，天氣炎熱，又位於颱風要衝，因此聚落多背山面海，於海岸平坦緩坡地發展出半穴居式的住屋，房屋冬暖夏涼。