Many oak species in are expected to increase in northern Wisconsin and western Upper Michigan by the end of the century (black, bur, northern red, and northern pin oaks).

Submitted by sdhandler on

Multiple forest impact models tend to agree that oaks are likely to increase in suitable habitat and biomass across a range of climate scenarios by the end of the century. Results are mixed for northern red oak and northern pin oak. Oak forests are limited by cold temperatures in northern Wisconsin and western Upper Michigan, so warming may allow oaks to expand into previously unsuitable areas. Several new oak (pin oak, post oak, scarlet oak, and others) and hickory (mockernut hickory, pignut hickory, and others) species may gain suitable habitat and become a component of these systems.