Oak trees face global threats
More than 30 per cent of the world’s oak species are threatened with extinction, according to latest research.
The Red List of Oaks report, compiled by international watchdog organisations Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, analysed the threats to the 430 species of oak on the planet. Countries with the highest number of threatened oak species are Mexico (32 species), China (36), Vietnam (20) and the United States (16). Invasive pests, diseases and climate change are key threats to oaks in the United States, whereas deforestation is the biggest challenge in south east Asia. The report, which took five years to compile, calls for concerted conservation efforts in the centres of diversity for oaks in Mexico and south east Asia.
“Oaks are among the most charismatic of trees, and they are also keystone species in the habitats they occupy,” said BGCI Secretary General Paul Smith. “More than 2,300 species of bird, mosses, fungi, insects, lichens and mammals are recorded as using native oaks for food and shelter in the UK.”
“We heard during evidence sessions of the importance of healthy ecosystems, and we are in a time of reckoning where we must adapt and put nature in recovery,” said committee chairman Philip Dunne MP. “Our report will be incomplete without photographs to illustrate just how wonderful British nature is.”
The competition closes on March 12. Send your photos to eacom@parliament.uk.