Dry Oak Forest in Winter

Wayne National Forest
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Dry Oak Forest in Winter
Dry Oak Forest in Winter

Dry oak forests can be found on the tops and southwest-facing slopes of ridges. When learning about dry oak forests, you need to know two important facts: 1) water runs downhill, which means the tops of ridges are dryer than the bottoms, and 2) ridgetops and southwest-facing slopes get more direct sunlight than other places. These two facts combined means ridge tops and southwest slopes are home to hardy, sun-loving plants that can withstand dry soils.

Oaks thrive in sunny conditions and easily withstand dry soils, making dry oak forests one of the more “oaky” oak ecosystems. In fact, up to 73% of the canopy trees in dry oak forests are oak trees! Dry oak forests are also home to Eastern Whip-Poor-Wills, Summer Tanagers, and Timber Rattlesnakes, to name a few special animal species.

In the past, fire played an important role in dry oak forests. These fires were set by Indigenous peoples as part of important cultural traditions. But after the forceful removal of the Indigenous peoples who lived in southeast Ohio during the 1700s, and the fire suppression policies of the late 1800s and early 1900s, fire has all but disappeared from southeast Ohio’s dry oak forests. This has led to negative environmental changes that threaten the health and future of dry oak forests. Fires help maintain many oak-dominated ecosystems (think of it like routine car maintenance, or regular cleaning of your house), and without fires those oak-dominated ecosystems often begin converting to other types of ecosystems that our native plant and animal species aren’t used to. We can use fire today to help keep dry oak forests—and other oak ecosystems—healthy

Forest Service photo by Kyle Brooks

Taken on: December 12, 2021
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Camera: Nikon D5500, f/9.0, 1/400 sec, 16mm (=24mm), ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Nikon D5500
Lens: 16.0-85.0 mm f/3.5-5.6
Aperture: f/9.0
Exposure Time: 0.003 sec (1/400)
Focal Length: 16mm (35mm equivalent: 24mm)
ISO: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual
Metering Mode: Spot
White Balance: Auto
Color Space: sRGB
Software: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 13.0.1 (Windows)
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