Acorns are beginning to fall at Blue Jay Barrens. The rate of fall will increase over the next several days, but the crop doesn’t look to be overly large this year. 2007 and 2008 were drought years and the oaks responded by producing an abundance of acorns. Last year had adequate moisture and I think the trees are in a period of recovery from the stress of drought and excess fruit production. It’ll be a race between the deer, turkey and squirrels to see who gets the nuts this year.
It’s hard to find any edible nuts on the ground. Most have been eaten by Acorn Weevil larvae, which feed on the nut and then bore their way out to pupate in the soil. The hole left in the acorn is evidence that the weevil was there. But if the weevil is gone, why has the hole been closed?
Doesn’t look like there’s much edible material left inside. The large animals that feed on acorns are quick to take those that are edible. Most of those left on the ground are inedible, at least to most things.
Here’s why the hole is closed. This is the larva of an Acorn Moth. The Acorn Moth lays its egg near the hole left by the exiting weevil and the newly hatched moth larva enters the acorn through the hole. Once inside, the moth larva consumes what was left by the weevil.
I found this small larva feeding beneath an acorn cap. It appears to have been working to gain entry into the nut. The size was too small for me to determine if it was another Acorn Moth larva.
This acorn fell while I was standing beside the tree. This is a healthy nut that could germinate to produce a new tree. Well, not after I cut it in half.
2010 was an exceptional year for acorn production in Southern Ohio and much of the Eastern United States. Many people within a couple miles of Blue Jay Barrens reported acorns nearly covering the ground in their oak woods. Unfortunately, Blue Jay Barrens’ oaks failed to join the majority and produced a 2010 acorn crop that was slightly below normal. I headed into one of the most concentrated stands of mixed oaks to officially assess the 2011 acorn crop.
I did find acorns and they were in numbers that I consider to be about average. At least there were several meat filled acorns scattered about. When I checked last year, the only acorns I could find were either buggy or rotting. For a short while the supply should outpace the demand.
The number of empty acorn caps on the ground was too low to suggest that animals had already cleaned up a huge crop. Many of the caps were fresh and clean, indicating that they had just recently fallen.
Pieces of seed coat sitting on top of the fallen leaves were the most abundant evidence of acorns. Some of these pieces were newly exposed, as evidenced by the bright fuzzy lining.
This looks like the work of a mouse. I used to have a pet Peromyscus named Mousie and this is exactly how he would deal with an acorn. I’m surprised the mouse didn’t hide the nut away somewhere safe. Maybe it became a meal before it had finished eating.
There are still a few acorns left in the trees, but not enough to make this more than an average year. I guess average is pretty good. There should be enough food to maintain animal populations near their current level, so there won’t be any radical population swings one way or the other. It’s out of my control anyway. I just watch and see what happens.
