Oaks in the Park

I walked out to the stream on Monday, February 29th, to find an organism to write about here. I was entirely stunned by absolute dearth of life, to be perfectly frank. In fact, I didn’t spot a single living animal—even the mosquitoes seemed to know that the creek was not a place for life. Although some light grasses were inhabiting the area in forlorn, mediocre patches here and there, the largest portion of life was in the trees, hulking organisms towering high above us. Not that you would know they were full of life, though—despite the warmer weather, spring isn’t quite in full swing, and as such buds have yet to appear on even the most eager of trees.
   Some of the notable trees I saw were oak trees. An oak is a tree in the genus (group of species) Quercus (Latin for “oak tree”). Although the oak tree I saw was Quercus alba, the white oak, there are about six hundred extant (non-extinct) species of oaks today, many of which are native to Virginia and the eastern US.
    In these dangerous modern times that prove such a risk for plants and animals of all varieties due to human intervention, how has the rag-tag group of Quercus trees fared? Pretty well! With the exception of notable outliers like Quercus hinckleyi and Quercus hintonii, almost all of the oaks found on the IUCN Red List are categorized as “of least concern.” With six hundred extant species, only having a few endangered ones on a planet with 16,000+ endangered species is a remarkable feat, and truly a sign of the humble oak’s resilient nature.
    It makes sense, then, that in the creek’s barren landscape, the oak trees are the largest sign of life. And further, I hope they still are in the future—oaks have graced the Earth with their luscious presence for thousands of years, and I hope they lighten our days for thousands more to come.

Read more about oak trees at these links!
Identify your oak by its bark.
IUCN Red List
The History of the English Oak
History of Oak Trees