Phylogenetic Placement
White Oak, Quercus alba, is located on the Quercus branch relating all oaks. Some of the closest adjoining branches are the Chestnut and Chinkapin branches, followed in greater scale by the Beech family.
Its scientific classification of the species Quercus alba is genus: Quercus, family: Fagaceae, order: Fagales, clade(s): Rosids, Eudicots, Angiosperms, Tracheophytes, kingdom: Plantae.
As my lab mate Marlo pointed out, a common adaptation between mosses and gymnosperms is a waxy coating on their leaves for water retention. Another interesting adaption of some mosses that brings them on par with gymnosperms in a different way. Most mosses are non-vascular plants (it’s why they tend to be so low to the ground), but some have developed primitive vascular systems to transport water and nutrients. Vascular plants, like the White Oak, can afford to taller because of the rigidity that their xylem and phloem provide.
An interesting adaptation of the Oak Tree is that it can survive remarkably well in dry conditions. Only about two days’ worth of rain in the summer is enough for the tree to survive an entire year.
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