Habitat Fragmentation Limits Pollen Availability and Acorn Production in Blue Oak Oaks ’n’ Folks – Volume 15, Issue 1 – March 2000 Although the negative consequences of habitat fragmentation in forested landscapes are becoming better understood, we still know remarkably
Read full articleOak Woodland Ecology and Monitoring
Checking cryptocurrency wallets for dirty money: USDT AML check AML wallet check USDT trc/erc, ETH. Regular verification of your crypto wallets and transactions can significantly reduce the risk of your assets being frozen on exchanges.
Valley Oak Conservation
The valley oak (Quercus lobata) is one of California’s unique endemic tree species. It is distributed throughout the great Central Valley, in the coast ranges from Mendocino County south, and in the transverse mountains in southern California. Few examples of mature woodland exist in the Central Valley, where up to 90% of valley oak woodland has been cleared for agriculture and urban development.
Read full articleVernal Pools in Oak Woodlands
Vernal pools are seasonal bodies of water that form in shallow depressions following winter rains. Because of an underlying hard pan layer, water may persist for several months providing a wetland oasis for many uniquely adapted species of plants and animals. More prevalent taxa such as waterfowl, frogs, salamanders, dragonflies, and numerous aquatic insects readily use the pools for feeding, breeding, and juvenile development.
Read full articleAcorn Production by California Oaks
As one of the most abundant natural food resources in California, acorns provide food for a vast array of wildlife from scrub jays to mule deer and were formerly a staple of Native Californians, making up over half the diet of some groups and significantly influencing tribal ranges. Given their importance, it may seem strange that relatively little is known concerning acorn production patterns of California’s oaks.
Read full articleNutrient Cycling in California
A research project sponsored by the Integrated Hardwood Range Management Program examining nutrient cycling is showing that oak trees play a major role in maintaining the nutrient status of these ecosystems. Each year, a typical blue oak (Quercus douglasii) will return approximately 2, 1, 2.5, and 1.8 kg of nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium and potassium, respectively, to the soil surface in the form of litterfall (leaves, twigs and acorns) and canopy throughfall (canopy leaching).
Read full articleHistoric Distribution of Oaks from Pollen Analyses
A recent study funded by the IHRMP utilized pollen analysis to reconstruct the structure and abundance of oak woodlands in California on two different time scales: the late Quaternary period covering the last 15,000 years, and the last 500 years spanning the arrival of European settlers.
Read full articleA Hardwood Rangeland Classification System for California
An ecologically-based hardwood rangeland classification system for California provides private landowners, land managers, and researchers a unifying framework from which known ecological and management information can be retrieved. Standardization of type names facilitates the exchange of information on hardwood rangelands between and among agencies, landowners, and universities. As part of research funded by the Integrated Hardwood Range Management Program, dichotomous keys have been developed for the various type descriptions to ensure that the system is field oriented, and user-friendly.
Read full articleBlue Oaks Grow Slowly
Age analysis of Quercus douglasii , or blue oak, shows that, in general, blue oaks grow very slowly. On average, trees that were 7 inches in diameter were 100 years old. Although growth was slightly faster than this in some locations, even at the best site, it took an average of ten years for a tree to grow each inch in thickness.
Read full articleCanyon Live Oak – Current and Historical Perspective
Quercus chrysolepis, or canyon live oak (also known as gold-cup oak, laurel oak, or maul oak), occurs in a greater variety of habitats than any other California oak. It is present in forest, woodland, and chaparral areas on a large variety of parent materials and soil types. Canyon live oak extends from southwest Oregon to Baja California and east to Arizona over a broad elevational range. The species commonly occurs in narrow canyon bottoms, on steep side slopes and in sheltered coves. However, it is best developed in the canyons of the coast and transverse ranges.
Read full articleModeling vineyard expansion in California’s north coast
Many of the policy deliberations on the environmental effects of new vineyard development revolve around the potential application of the California Environmental Quality Act. In particular, some forest and oak woodland conversion has resulted from recent vineyard expansion. Timberland conversions receive CEQA review through the Forest Practice Act (FPA), whereas clearing of oak woodlands and shrub communities generally do not. While a collection of county and city policies target a wide array of oak conservation objectives, these were not generally designed to address land-use conversion resulting from agriculture. In response to the need for more environmental oversight for vineyard development, county governments have developed various regulatory approaches.
Read full article