Muenchh.
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.146415
Element CodePDFAG050A0
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderFagales
FamilyFagaceae
GenusQuercus
Other Common Namesscarlet oak (EN)
Concept ReferenceKartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Taxonomic CommentsJensen in FNA (1997, vol. 3) and Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team (2024) do not recognize varieties of Quercus coccinea.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2024-07-04
Change Date1984-04-09
Edition Date2024-07-04
Edition AuthorsN. Ventrella (2024)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank ReasonsQuercus coccinea is a common tree found on poor soils, or occasionally on poorly drained sites in uplands, slopes, and ridges of eastern North America in the United States from Wisconsin east to Maine south to Georgia and west to Arkansas. It is threatened by wildfire, succession, fungal diseases, wind disturbance, logging, drought, predation, and development. Large die-offs of scarlet oak in eastern oak-dominated forests have been documented over the past few decades as a result of windthrow coupled with "oak decline," which is the result of a combination of stressors including insect predation and drought. However, with a large native range extent and over 1,000 occurrences, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent CommentsQuercus coccinea is native to eastern North America in the United States from Wisconsin east to Maine south to Georgia and west to Arkansas (FNA 1997). Range extent was estimated to be 1.9 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024).
Occurrences CommentsBy applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024, it is estimated that there are over 1,000 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024). However, this taxon is commonly cultivated, and iNaturalist observations (almost 30,000) were not evaluated for evidence of cultivation (iNaturalist 2024).
Threat Impact CommentsScarlet oak is particularly susceptible to windthrow and predation by the red oak borer (Greenberg et al. 2011). Additional threats to Quercus coccinea include wildfire, succession, fungal diseases, logging, drought, predation, development, and other threats in some places, though there is insufficient data, including anecdotal accounts, to understand scope and severity of threats for this species.