The SPHERE View of the Taurus Star-Forming Region

The sample of planet-forming disks observed by high-contrast imagingcampaigns over the last decade is mature enough to enable the demographicalanalysis of individual star-forming regions. We present the full census ofTaurus sources with VLT/SPHERE polarimetric images available. The whole samplesums up to 43 targets (of which 31 have not been previously published)corresponding to one-fifth of the Class II population in Taurus and about halfof such objects that are observable. A large fraction of the sample isapparently made up of isolated faint disks (equally divided between small andlarge self-shadowed disks). Ambient signal is visible in about one-third of thesample. This probes the interaction with the environment and with companions orthe outflow activity of the system. The central portion of the Taurus regionalmost exclusively hosts faint disks, while the periphery also hosts brightdisks interacting with their surroundings. The few bright disks are foundaround apparently older stars. The overall picture is that the Taurus region isin an early evolutionary stage of planet formation. Yet, some objects arediscussed individually, as in an intermediate or exceptional stage of the diskevolution. This census provides a first benchmark for the comparison of thedisk populations in different star forming regions.