The mighty oak faces challenges in the Pacific West

Abstract

In popular imagination, the oak tree stands for strength, endurance, and longevity. But in the coastal lowlands and central valleys of British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California, oaks face a battery of natural and human-induced threats. Sudden oak death, caused by a virulent pathogen identified in 2000, has killed millions of tanoaks, California black oaks, and coast live oaks in California and southern Oregon. In 2008, scientists linked oak deaths in San Diego County to the newly named goldspotted oak borer, an insect first detected in the state in 2004. Over the years, much of the oak landscape along the west coast has been converted to residential and agricultural uses. Where it remains in Washington and Oregon, the sun-loving oak is threatened by encroachment of other trees. In California’s Central Valley, blue and valley oak communities are experiencing insufficient regeneration to match the current population.

Based on science by Tara Barrett, Tom Coleman, Susan Frankel, Connie Harrington, and Rick Kelsey

Citation

Wells, Gail. 2010. The mighty oak faces challenges in the Pacific West. Science Update 20. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 11 p.