''Quercus calliprinos'' is an oak classified as part of the '' Ilex'' section of the genus growing in the Mediterranean climate zone, mainly on limestone, in mid-elevations, often dominating the flora, alongside terebinths ('' Pistacia terebinthus'').Zohary, M. "The maquis of Quercus calliprinos in Israel, Palestine, and Jordan." Bulletin of the Research Council of Israel 9.2 (1960): 51-72.. It is native to eastern Mediterranean region and southwest Asia, and grows in the Levant, North Africa to Anatolia and further eastwards. In Israel it is called the common oak (, ) or the

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

oak. ''Quercus calliprinos'' was described by Webb in 1838. The name ''calliprinos'' derives from Ancient Greek, and means ‘beautiful oak’: κάλλος (''kallos'') = beauty + πρῖνος (''prinos'') a name for Holm Oak (''Q. ilex''). The common name Sindian Oak derives from the local Palestinian name (Stapf 1920).

Description

''Quercus calliprinos'' is a small to medium-sized tree or large

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

reaching tall (often only 1–3 m tall where heavily browsed by goats) and 1 m in trunk diameter. It is evergreen, with spiny-serrated

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

long and 1.5–3 cm broad. The

acorn The acorn, or oaknut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera ''Quercus'' and '' Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains one seed (occasionally two seeds), enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and borne ...

s are 3–4 cm long and 2–3 cm diameter when mature (about 18 months after pollination), held in a cup covered in dense, elongated, reflexed scales. ''Quercus calliprinos'' is closely related to the Kermes oak (''Q. coccifera'') of the western Mediterranean, and is treated as a

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

or variety of it by some botanists. The Kermes oak is distinguished from it by its smaller size (usually shrubby, not over ) and smaller acorns less than 2 cm diameter.

References

Palestine Oak in "Wildflowers of Israel"
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2666806 calliprinos Flora of North Africa Trees of Mediterranean climate Plants described in 1838