imported>Citation bot: Added bibcode. Removed URL that duplicated identifier. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Eastmain | #UCB_webform 25/459

2025-03-20T08:22:27Z

Added bibcode. Removed URL that duplicated identifier. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Eastmain | #UCB_webform 25/459

New page

{{Short description|Forest with tree canopy dominated by oaks}}
{{About|a type of plant community|other uses|Oak Forest (disambiguation)}}
[[File:2013-05-04 17 18 04 Stunted white oak saplings beneath the large white oak near the tributary to the West Branch Shabakunk Creek between Walton and Farrell Avenues.jpg|thumb|220px|White oak (''[[Quercus alba]]'') in [[New Jersey]].]]
An '''oak forest''' is a [[plant community]] with a tree [[Canopy (biology)|canopy]] dominated by [[oak]]s (''Quercus spp.''). In terms of [[Crown closure|canopy closure]], oak forests contain the most closed canopy, compared to [[oak savanna]]s and [[oak woodland]]s.<ref name="widnr">{{cite web |title=Oak Woodland - Wisconsin DNR |url=https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/endangeredresources/communities.asp?mode=detail&Code=CTFOR010WI |website=dnr.wi.gov |publisher=Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources |accessdate=2018-09-22}}</ref>

==Setting==

'''Oak forests''' are categorized as [[Deciduous|deciduous forests]] which commonly have dense [[Canopy (biology)|canopy]] cover (~70%) on dry soils with large amounts of undecomposed [[Oak|oak leaves]] over the ground.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mixed Oak Forest/Woodland {{!}} Mass.gov |url=https://www.mass.gov/doc/mixed-oak-forestwoodland |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=www.mass.gov}}</ref> The forests are commonly found around the [[Appalachian Mountains]] and neighboring areas in the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest United States]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Oak / Heath Forests |url=https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/natural-communities/nctc6 |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=www.dcr.virginia.gov}}</ref> Soils within the forests are highly acidic and dry with habitats existing in low elevation areas as well as large mountainsides, providing resources and an ecosystem for large amounts of common plant and animal species in those regions.<ref name=":0" /> Indicated by the large presence of [[oak]]s (''Quercus spp.''), the community is also dominated by inflammable shrubs and different vegetation commonly seen in [[oak savanna]]s and [[oak woodland]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Oak Ecosystem |url=https://www.letthesunshinein.life/oak-forest-system/ |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=Let The Sun Shine In |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="widnr" /> This plant life is often credited with assisting in maintaining air, soil, and water quality as well as playing a major role in [[biodiversity]] of different state regions.<ref name=":0" />

==Conservation and Threats==

'''Oak forests''' are susceptible to a shift in the tree demography, with greater abundances of shade-tolerant and fire-sensitive species, such as [[Acer rubrum|red maple]] (''Acer rubrum''), [[Acer saccharum|sugar maple]] (''A. saccharum''), [[Fagus grandifolia|American beech]] (''Fagus grandifolia'') and [[hickory]] (''Carya spp.'').<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Babl-Plauche |first1=E. K. |last2=Alexander |first2=H. D. |last3=Siegert |first3=C. M. |last4=Willis |first4=J. L. |last5=Berry |first5=A. I. |date=2022-05-15 |title=Mesophication of upland oak forests: Implications of species-specific differences in leaf litter decomposition rates and fuelbed composition |journal=Forest Ecology and Management |language=en |volume=512 |pages=120141 |doi=10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120141 |s2cid=247503547 |issn=0378-1127|doi-access=free |bibcode=2022ForEM.51220141B }}</ref> This leads to a lack of oak seedings and saplings to grow and replace mature [[oak]]s (''Quercus spp.'') once they die and growth in abundance of new species. Deer browse is also a large threat to the plant community as [[white-tailed deer]] (''Odocoileus virginianus'') use oak seedlings for consumption at growing rates with increasing population sizes.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Protecting Oak Forests in National Parks (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/protecting-oak-forests-in-national-parks.htm |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=www.nps.gov |language=en}}</ref>

To combat this, the [[New River Gorge National Park and Preserve]] attempted controlled fires to burn off [[Plant litter|leaf litter]] of competing non-oaks without harming mature trees to encourage oak seed growth. Only the site of Backus Mountain showed positive effects of the controlled burns as oak seedlings grew in amount and [[maple]] seedlings reduced while all other sites found decreases in oak seeds.<ref name=":1" /> Deer browse is also combatted by the [[New River Gorge National Park and Preserve|organization]] with tall deer fences being installed in 10-acre sections of oak forests, promoting the growth of tall oak seedlings regularly and is now encourage by the [[National Park Service]] to [[Forest management|forest managers]] having to handle similar issues.<ref name=":1" />

==Examples==
* Southern dry-mesic oak forests in [[Minnesota]] dominated by red oak (''[[Quercus rubra]]''), white oak (''[[Quercus alba|Q. alba]]''), and basswood (''[[Tilia americana]]'')<ref name="mndnr">{{cite web |title=Southern Dry-Mesic Oak Forest |url=https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/natural_resources/npc/mesic_hardwood/mhs37.pdf |website=dnr.state.mn.us |publisher=Minnesota Department of Natural Resources |accessdate=2018-09-22}}</ref>
* [[Foloi oak forest]] in [[Greece]], dominated by ''[[Quercus frainetto]]''<ref name="mauri2016">Mauri, A., Enescu, C. M., Houston Durrant, T., de Rigo, D., Caudullo,
G., 2016. Quercus frainetto in Europe: distribution, habitat, usage and threats. In: San-Miguel-Ayanz, J., de Rigo, D., Caudullo, G., Houston Durrant, T., Mauri, A. (Eds.), European Atlas of Forest Tree Species. Publ. Off. EU, Luxembourg, pp. e01de78+</ref>
* [[Oak–hickory forest]] throughout eastern North America
* [[Oak–heath forest]]
* [[Tekoa Mountain (Massachusetts)|Tekoa Mountain]] in [[Massachusetts]]

==See also==
* [[Oak savanna]]
* [[Oak woodland]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in the United States]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of the United States]]
[[Category:Flora of the Northeastern United States]]
[[Category:Forest ecology]]
[[Category:Quercus]]

{{Ecology-stub}}

Oak forest - Revision history

imported>Citation bot: Added bibcode. Removed URL that duplicated identifier. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Eastmain | #UCB_webform 25/459