''Quercus macrolepis'', the Valonia oak, is a species of oak in the beech family,

Fagaceae The Fagaceae are a family of flowering plants that includes beeches, chestnuts and oaks, and comprises eight genera with about 927 species. Fagaceae in temperate regions are mostly deciduous, whereas in the tropics, many species occur as evergre ...

. Formerly, it was commonly treated as a subspecies of the closely related and

sympatric In biology, two related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter one another. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct species sh ...

mount Tabor oak. At present, however, it is mostly granted species-status.

Geographical range

It is found in the Balkans, and in the southern and eastern Mediterranean, including Albania, the Greek Islands, Turkey, Israel, and Morocco.

Systematics

Within the oak genus, Quercus macrolepis is classified in the subgenus ''Cerris'', section ''Cerris'', which includes the turkey oak and related species. It is most closely related to Mount Tabor oak (Quercus ithaburensis) and

Brant's oak ''Quercus brantii'', the Brant's oak, is a species of oak native to Western Asia, namely in Iran, Iraq, Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجم� ...

(Quercus brantii).

Uses

The cups, known as valonia, are used for

tanning Tanning may refer to: * Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather * Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin ** Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun ** Sunless tanning, application of a stain or d ...

and dyeing as are the unripe acorns called camata or camatina. The ripe acorns are eaten raw or boiled.Qercus aegilops on food.oregonstate.edu

References

macrolepis Trees of Europe Trees of Morocco Flora of Albania Flora of Israel Flora of Palestine (region) Trees of Mediterranean climate {{Quercus-stub

Geographical range

Systematics

Uses

See also

References