Mexican Oaks: a History of Their Evolution, Importance, and Taxonomic Mystery

Susana Valencia-A.

Published May 2026 in International Oaks No. 37: 27–34

Abstract

Oak trees are woody angiosperms that originated in high latitudes during the late Paleocene or early Eocene. During the Miocene glaciations, they migrated south, reaching Mexico and Colombia in the Americas. Their cultural, economic, and ecological importance has led to a close relationship with the development of humankind. In Mexico, the study of oaks increased in the 1990s, and it is in this country that they reach their greatest species diversity. At the end of 2023, a group of six taxonomists began a revision of the genus for Mexico and Central America, and found that there are 179 species of oak in Mexico, distributed in four sections: 86 in section Lobatae, 86 in section Quercus, 4 in section Protobalanus, and 3 in section Virentes. Sixty-five percent of these are endemic, distributed throughout the Mexican territory except for Quintana Roo and Yucatán, and at altitudes between 40 and 3,400 m.a.s.l. There are still many taxonomic problems to be solved in the genus Quercus, but collaborative work is required, as well as an increased awareness of the role of this generation of humans in the conservation of this precious legacy for future generations.

Keywords

Quercus, Fagaceae, taxonomy, specific richness, Mexico

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