Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Quercus afares
open-in-new
<h2 id="taxonomy">Taxonomy</h2> <p>The relationship of <i>Q. afares</i> to other oaks was investigated in 2006. It was initially classified in <a href="/facts/Quercus_sect._Cerris/or49dFSM"><i>Q.</i> section <i>Cerris</i></a>, because of morphological similarities with two other species, Turkey oak <i>(<a href="/facts/Quercus_cerris/hvVgPHjq">Quercus cerris</a>)</i> of southern Europe and chestnut-leaved oak <i>(<a href="/facts/Quercus_castaneifolia/oV2vwm9R">Quercus castaneifolia</a>)</i> of the Caucasus and northern Iran.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a> A 2017 classification still places it in this section.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a> A 2006 genetic analysis using both nuclear (allozymes) and chloroplastic markers found that <i>Q. afares</i> originated as a hybrid of <i>Q. suber</i> and <i>Q. canariensis</i>. Although it is common for oaks of related species to hybridize, the parent species of <i>Q. afares</i> are from genetically distant sections of the genus, <i>Q. suber</i> from section <i><a href="/facts/List_of_Quercus_species/or49dFSM">Cerris</a></i> and <i>Q. canariensis</i> from section <i><a href="/facts/List_of_Quercus_species/or49dFSM">Mesobalanus</a></i>. C. Mir <i>et al.</i> maintain that because <i>Q. afares</i> is genetically, morphologically and ecologically differentiated from its parental species, it should therefore be considered a stabilised hybrid species. Like <i>Q. suber</i>, it has a biennial reproductive cycle, corky bark, and similar fruit, and also does not occur on limestone soils. Unlike <i>Q. suber</i>, which is limited to coastal areas with mild winters, <i>Q. afares</i> shares the cold-tolerance of <i>Q. canariensis</i> which shares some of its mountain habitats.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> </p> <ul><li><a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/pa0513">"Mediterranean conifer and mixed forests"</a>. <i>Terrestrial Ecoregions</i>. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved February 10, 2008.</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Mir, C.; Toumi, L.; Jarne, P.; Sarda, V.; Di Giusto, F. & Lumaret, R. (2006). "Endemic North African Quercus afares Pomel originates from hybridisation between two genetically very distant oak species (Q. suber L. and Q. canariensis Willd.): evidence from nuclear and cytoplasmic markers" (PDF). Heredity. 96 (2): 175–184. Bibcode:2006Hered..96..175M. doi:10.1038/sj.hdy.6800782. PMID 16369575. <a href="http://www.nature.com/hdy/journal/v96/n2/pdf/6800782a.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.nature.com/hdy/journal/v96/n2/pdf/6800782a.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Denk, Thomas; Grimm, Guido W.; Manos, Paul S.; Deng, Min & Hipp, Andrew L. (2017). "Appendix 2.1: An updated infrageneric classification of the oaks" (xls). figshare. doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.5547622.v1. Retrieved 2023-02-18. <a href="https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Appendix_2_1_________An_updated_infrageneric_classification_of_the_oaks/5547622/1" target="_blank">https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Appendix_2_1_________An_updated_infrageneric_classification_of_the_oaks/5547622/1</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Mir, C.; Toumi, L.; Jarne, P.; Sarda, V.; Di Giusto, F. & Lumaret, R. (2006). "Endemic North African Quercus afares Pomel originates from hybridisation between two genetically very distant oak species (Q. suber L. and Q. canariensis Willd.): evidence from nuclear and cytoplasmic markers" (PDF). Heredity. 96 (2): 175–184. Bibcode:2006Hered..96..175M. doi:10.1038/sj.hdy.6800782. PMID 16369575. <a href="http://www.nature.com/hdy/journal/v96/n2/pdf/6800782a.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.nature.com/hdy/journal/v96/n2/pdf/6800782a.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>