Most people, including students, understand and value diversity at some level. For example, we all understand that each person is different, and while life would be simpler if we were all the same, in the long run, humans are very dependent on this diversity. We need people with a variety of different skills and abilities to keep mankind versatile and efficient. Extending this principle to the scale of ecological systems is not easy, but it is a step that all biologists and students must eventually take. Except for the turkey oak, all of the oaks are evergreen , which means leaves stay on the trees all year and drop off only as they die.
Turkey oaks lose their leaves in winter and tender new leaves emerge in early spring.
Most of the leaf eating occurs in March and April when new growth is easy to eat, or after a fire, when the new oak sprouts emerge. While many species of plants have flowers with male and female parts to ensure pollination by insects, oak trees have separate male and female flowers that occur on the same tree. Rather than relying on insects for pollination, oak trees need wind to blow pollen from male flowers, or catkins , to petal-less female flowers. Several species of native bees, gall-making wasps, and caterpillars eat pollen produced by male flowers and can be found on the catkins when oak trees bloom in early spring. Oak trees provide essential food for many animals in the scrub.