Cinnamomum cassia elongated leaves that are long and have a decidedly reddish colour when young. Chinese cassia is a close relative to Ceylon cinnamon ("C. verum"), Saigon cinnamon ("C. loureiroi"), also known as "Vietnamese cinnamon", Indonesian cinnamon ("C. burmannii"), also called "korintje", and Malabar cinnamon ("C. citriodorum") from Sri Lanka. In all five species, the dried bark is used as a spice. Chinese cassia's flavour is less delicate than that of Ceylon cinnamon. Its bark is thicker, more difficult to crush, and has a rougher texture than that of Ceylon cinnamon. Most of the spice sold as cinnamon in the United States,
Cassia crossbill Red Squirrels as their beak is adapted for a specific type of pine cone. This has led to a coevolutionary arms race with the lodgepole pine, which explains why they are confined in such a small area. Other Red Crossbill call types, typically call type 2 & 5, are also found in these areas, but seldomly breed here due to being poorly adapted to the pine cone structure. Due to their restricted range and habitat, there is a cause for concern for this species survival. The Cassia crossbill ("Loxia sinesciuris") was first described in 2009 as the South Hills crossbill,