An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus Quercus of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne in a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere; it includes some 500 species, both deciduous and evergreen. Fossil oaks date back to the Middle Eocene. Molecular phylogeny shows that the genus is divided into Old World and New World clades, but many oak species hybridise freely, making the genus's history difficult to resolve.
Quercus montana, the chestnut oak, is a species of oak in the white oak group, Quercus sect. Quercus. It is native to the eastern United States, where it is one of the most important ridgetop trees from southern Maine southwest to central Mississippi, with an outlying northwestern population in southern Michigan. It is also sometimes called rock oak because of its presence in montane and other rocky habitats.
Quercus alba, the white oak, is one of the preeminent hardwoods of eastern and central North America. It is a long-lived oak, native to eastern and central North America and found from Minnesota, Ontario, Quebec, and southern Maine south as far as northern Florida and eastern Texas. Specimens have been documented to be over 450 years old.
Quercus cerris, the Turkey oak or Austrian oak, is an oak native to south-eastern Europe and Asia Minor. It is the type species of Quercus sect. Cerris, a section of the genus characterised by shoot buds surrounded by soft bristles, bristle-tipped leaf lobes, and acorns that usually mature in 18 months.
Quercus suber, commonly called the cork oak, is a medium-sized, evergreen oak tree in the section Quercus sect. Cerris. It is the primary source of cork for wine bottle stoppers and other uses, such as cork flooring and as the cores of cricket balls. It is native to southwest Europe and northwest Africa. In the Mediterranean basin the tree is an ancient species with fossil remnants dating back to the Tertiary period.
Quercus laurifolia is a medium-sized semi-evergreen oak in the red oak section Quercus sect. Lobatae. It is native to the southeastern and south-central the United States.
Quercus glauca, commonly called ring-cupped oak or Japanese blue oak, is a tree in the beech family (Fagaceae). It is native to eastern and southern Asia, where it is found in Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, northern and eastern India, southern Japan, Kashmir, Korea, Myanmar, Nepal, and Vietnam. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis.
Quercus coccifera, the kermes oak, is an oak bush in the Ilex section of the genus. It has many synonyms, including Quercus calliprinos. It is native to the Mediterranean region and Northern African Maghreb, south to north from Morocco to France and west to east from Portugal to Cyprus and Turkey, crossing Spain, Italy, Libya, Balkans, and Greece, including Crete. The Kermes Oak was historically important as the food plant of Kermes scale insects, from which a red dye called crimson was obtained. The etymology of the specific name coccifera is related to the production of red cochineal (crimson) dye and derived from Latin coccum which was from Greek κόκκος, the kermes insect. The Latin -fera means 'bearer'.
Quercus faginea, the Portuguese oak, is a species of oak native to the western Mediterranean region in the Iberian Peninsula. Similar trees in the Atlas Mountains of northwest Africa are usually included in this species, or sometimes treated as a distinct species, Quercus tlemcenensis. It occurs in mountains from sea level to 1,900 metres above sea level, and flourishes in a variety of soils and climates. Out of all the oak forests in the Iberian Peninsula, the southern populations of Portuguese oak were found to have the highest diversity and endemism of spider species.
Quercus chrysolepis, commonly termed canyon live oak, canyon oak, golden cup oak or maul oak, is a North American species of evergreen oak that is found in Mexico and in the western United States, notably in the California Coast Ranges. This tree is often found near creeks and drainage swales growing in moist cool microhabitats. Its leaves are a glossy dark green on the upper surface with prominent spines; a further identification arises from the leaves of canyon live oak being geometrically flat.
Quercus durata, commonly known as leather oak, is a species of oak endemic to California, common in the Coast Ranges and the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. The common name "leather oak" is derived from the leathery texture on the lop of its leaves. Taxonomically it is placed in the white oak group.
Quercus hemisphaerica is a species of oak native to the southeastern and south-central United States. It is in the red oak section of Quercus sect. Lobatae. It is often confused with and closely related to Quercus laurifolia, from which it differs in several key characteristics.
Quercus myrsinifolia is an Asian species of tree in the beech family Fagaceae. It has several common names, including bamboo-leaf oak, Chinese evergreen oak, and Chinese ring-cupped oak. Its Chinese name is 小叶青冈; pinyin: xiǎo yè qīng gāng, which means little leaf ring-cupped oak, in Japan it is called white oak and in Korea it is known as gasinamu (가시나무). It is native to east central and southeast China, Japan, Korea, Laos, northern Thailand, and Vietnam. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis.
Quercus aliena, the galcham oak or oriental white oak, is a species of oak in the family Fagaceae, in the white oak section Quercus.
Quercus helferiana is a species of tree in the beech family Fagaceae. It is native to Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, India (northeast), and southern China. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis.
Quercus augustinii is a rare species of tree in the beech family Fagaceae. It has been found in Vietnam as well as Guangxi, Guizhou, and Yunnan Provinces in southern China. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis.
Quercus austrocochinchinensis is an uncommon species of tree in the beech family Fagaceae. It has been found in Vietnam and Thailand as well as Yunnan Province in southern China. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis.
Quercus rex is an Asian species of tree in the family Fagaceae. It has been found in the seasonal tropical forests of northern Indochina, northeastern India, and also in the province of Yunnan in southwestern China. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis.
Quercus thorelii is an Asian species of tree in the beech family Fagaceae. The species is named after the French botanist Clovis Thorel. It has been found in Indochina and in southern China. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis, the ring-cupped oaks.
Quercus langbianensis is an uncommon oak tree species in the family Fagaceae. It is placed in subgenus Cerris, section Cyclobalanopsis, the ring-cupped oaks. These differ from other Quercus groups in that they have acorns with distinctive cups: usually with substantial rings, made-up of scales that have grown together. This species can be found in sub-tropical and tropical seasonal forests of Cambodia, China and Vietnam.
