Alcornoque, surera, ballot, leuge, rusque, surier, suve, corcier... all these names refer to the same tree, the cork oak (Quercus suber) of which Pliny the Elder (Ier century AD) was already extolling all its merits and uses. Cork oak forests, described as socio-ecological systems, have been exploited, cared for and modified for over three thousand years, not only for their cork, but also for their fruit, the acorns, which feed or have fed both humans and livestock.
This tree, which has provided a wealth of resources for thousands of years, is also remarkably resilient when confronted with fire. However, the cork oak is now threatened on both sides of the Mediterranean by climate change, overexploitation and abandonment.
An article written by Anne Bousquet-Mélou, and and to discover in The Conversation!
