Arkansas oak facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Arkansas oak |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Quercus
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| Species: |
arkansana
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| Natural range of Quercus arkansana | |
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The Arkansas oak, also known as Quercus arkansana, is a type of tree that belongs to the beech family. It grows naturally in the southeastern United States. You can find it in places like eastern Texas, southern Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and the Florida Panhandle.
What Does it Look Like?
The Arkansas oak is a deciduous tree, which means it loses its leaves every autumn. It can grow up to 15 meters (about 50 feet) tall. Its bark is black. The leaves can be smooth and oval-shaped, or they might have two or three small, shallow bumps (called lobes) along their edges.
Where Does it Grow?
The Arkansas oak likes shady spots. It often grows under taller trees in pine forests and hardwood forests. You can often find it on sandy hills, in ravines (small valleys), or near the start of small streams.
It's usually not the most common tree in an area. However, in some parts of Arkansas and Florida, you might see many of them growing together in large groups.
This tree often grows alongside other trees like Pinus taeda, shortleaf pine, and other types of oaks such as water oak, cherrybark oak, and sand post oak. It also shares its home with other hardwoods like black gum, sweetgum, sparkleberry, sassafras, magnolia, and persimmon.
Sometimes, the Arkansas oak can even mix with other oak types, like the water oak, creating new kinds of oaks.
Why is it Threatened?
The Arkansas oak is considered a vulnerable species. This means it faces threats that could make it harder for it to survive. Some of these threats include:
- Pine Plantations: Its natural home is sometimes cleared to make way for large farms of pine trees.
- Land Clearing: Land is also cleared for other uses, like building or farming, which destroys the oak's habitat.
- Drought: Long periods without rain (droughts) can cause the trees to get sick and even die.
See also
In Spanish: Quercus arkansana para niños
