Introducing Long Point’s oak trees
The Long Point Basin has 8 species of oaks, distributed widely across many different ecosystems, from oak savannas (displayed in the rightmost photo) to swampy woodlands! These oaks are categorized into two major groups – red oaks (Quercus section Lobatae) and white oaks (Quercus section Quecus), with a few notable differences in the fruit structure and leaf morphology. For species in the white oak group, it takes one year for an acorn to fully mature, while red oak acorns require two years to mature. White oak acorns are sweet, and red oak acorns are bitter. All of Ontario’s species in the red oak group have pointed leaf lobes, whereas species of the white oak group have smooth leaf lobes. Black Oak (Quercus velutina), Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra), and Northern Pin Oak (Quercus ellipsoidalis) are part of the red oak group, whereas White Oak (Quercus alba), Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa), Swamp White Oak (Quercus bicolor), Chinquapin Oak (Quercus muehlenbergii) and Dwarf Chinquapin Oak (Quercus prinoides) are in the white oak group.
Chinquapin Oak description, ecology, and habitat
Chinquapin Oak is one of the Long Point Basin’s more uncommon species. Like most of Ontario’s other oaks, can become a large tree, often exceeding 30 m in height in ideal growing conditions. The foliage of Chinquapin Oak is typically 10-20 cm long. Chinquapin Oak leaves are unlobed, but has distinctively serrated (toothed) on the leaf margins, each tooth being rounded at the edges. The leaves are deep green above, and pale green or silver on the underside. The autumn foliage of Chinquapin Oak is orange, yellow or rusty brown. The bark is somewhat similar to White Oak, consisting of narrow, flaky scales or ridges. However, the bark scales on Chinquapin Oak are not as coarse and thick as White Oak. Chinquapin Oak bark is grey-brown with a yellowish tinge, rather than strictly grey as in White Oak. The acorns usually measure 1.5-2.5 cm on Chinquapin Oak, ripening in 1 season. The cap covers around 1/3 to 1/2 of the acorn. Acorn production is highly uneven between years, with most being produced in heavy production “mast years”.
Considering this tree’s distribution across the Great Lakes Region, Chinquapin Oak is much more restricted than other species. In Ontario, it occurs across the Lake Erie Region north to Grand Bend (Lambton County) and Hamilton. Substantial populations of Chinquapin Oak can be found in Norfolk County (especially Long Point), the Rondeau Peninsula, the Thames River Valley, Point Pelee National Park, portions of the Niagara Region, and the AuSable Dunes on Lake Huron, stretching from Kettle Point to the Pinery Provincial Park. Chinquapin Oak is the dominant and keystone species in the alvar savannas of Pelee Island – a Lake Erie island which hosts a substantial number of Ontario’s endemic species. Chinquapin Oak also occurs in Prince Edward County (adjacent to Lake Ontario), and surrounding areas, such as the Trent River, and east to Kingston. Across North America, Chinquapin Oak can be found south to the Florida panhandle, and west to Texas. It is also found in the cloud forests of Mexico’s Sierra Madre Oriental.
Regarding associating plants, Chinquapin Oak grows most frequently in oak woodland savannas and dry forests, usually with Black Oak, Red Oak, White Oak, Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Black Cherry (Prunus serotina), Sassafras (Sassafras albidum), Ironwood (Ostyra virginiana), White Pine (Pinus strobus), and Red Pine (Pinus resinosa). In moist forests, White Oaks also occurs alongside Basswood (Tilia americana), Shagbark Hickory (Carya ovata), Bigtooth Aspen (Populus grandidentata), White Ash (Fraxinus americana), and Tuliptree (Liriodendron tulipifera). Understories of Chinquapin Oak forests or savannas typically contain a wide diversity of shade-tolerant perennial wildflowers, usually those with some affinity for dry, sandy sites.
Ecological importance of Chinquapin Oak
Like other oak species, Chinquapin Oak acorns are devoured by many wildlife species, especially squirrels (Sciuridae), mice (Muridae), White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo), Woodpeckers (Picidae), Blue Jays (Cyanocitta cristata), and Black Bears (Ursus americanus). Oaks also support highly biodiverse insect community, including 534 species of lepidopterans (butterflies and moths). Chinquapin Oak is a host plant for the Hairstreak Butterfly (Satyrium sp.), Imperial Moth (Eacles imperialis), Yellownecked Caterpillar Moth (Datana ministra), Fall Cankerworm Moth (Alsophila pometaria), Buck Moth (Hemileuca maia), Hornless Oakworm Moth (Anisota finlaysoni), and Oakleaf Blister Moth (Bucculatrix ainsliella). A high abundance of Chinquapin Oak in a forest or savanna is often indicative of an uncommon vegetation community, many which are of conservation interest (typically, Red Oak, White Oak, and Black Oak are more common). These ecosystems often support rare wildlife species – many which are reliant on Chinquapin Oak ecosystems for survival.
Fun facts
- Chinquapin Oak acorns are considered the sweetest in Ontario. They can even be eaten raw – though this is not usually advised, since they are more palatable cooked, as expected!
- The word “Chinquapin” is derived from an Indigenous North American word for American Chestnut (Castanea dentata), although the exact origin of the word is still not completely discovered.
- Chinquapin oaks thrive in alkaline soils, particularly those derived from limestone. This may partially account for it’s high abundance in some regions, such as on the Niagara Escarpment, Prince Edward County, and the alvars of Pelee Island.
- Mature Chinquapin Oak trees have a good ability to withstand fire, and may live for over 200 years!
Written by Matthew Palarchio, HBSc in Environmental Sciences, Western University.
Photos provided by Matthew Palarchio
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