Quercus Look

''Quercus look'', also known as the look oak and the Mount Hermon oak is a species of oak in subgenus ''Cerris'', section ''Cerris'', native to the Levant region of Western Asia, including northern Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. Of the local oak species, it prefers to grow at the highest altitudes, for instance at m on Mount Hermon.

Description

''Quercus look'' is a small-medium deciduous oak, ranging in height from 10-15 m. The leaves are long and shiny, with toothed edges. Leaf sizes range from 5-11 cm. The acorns are large, with a tip that is slightly concave or flat. The acorn's cup covers about two-thirds of the nut.

Distribution and ecology

''Quercus look'' is the southernmost representative of mountainous deciduous oaks in the Middle-East, occurring in mountain ranges of the Levant, Mount Hermon in particular. It grows at altitudes between 1400 and 1900 m in mixed stands with fellow sect. ''Cerris'' species Tabor oak ('' Quercus ithaburensis)'' and Lebanon oak (''Quercus libani)'' as well as the Lebanon cedar ('' Cedrus libani''), the Aleppo oak (''Quercus infectoria''), the Balkan maple ( ''Acer hyrcanum'' subsp. ''tauricolum''), Montpellier maple ( ''Acer monspessulanum'' subsp. ''microphyllum''''),'' styrax (''Styrax officinalis),'' Syrian pear ('' Pyrus syriaca''), azarole ('' Crataegus azarolus'') and several '' Sorbus'' species''.''

Taxonomy

The species was originally described by Theodor Kotschy in 1860, who gave it the botanical name ''look'', based on the name the locals from Rashaya used for the tree. Thereafter, the tree was identified either as a hybrid between the co-occurring ''Quercus libani'' and ''Quercus ithaburensis'' or as a subspecies of the latter. It was not until 2017 that the tree was identified as distinct from either of these species, a status that was genetically confirmed in 2018. This reassessment also revealed a close affinity between ''Quercus look'' and '' Quercus cerris'', the Turkey oak.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q28811737

look
Plants described in 1860