thumb|Lithocarpus sp. - [[MHNT]]

thumb|Lithocarpus sp. - [[MHNT]]

Lithocarpus is a genus in the beech family, Fagaceae. Trees in this genus are commonly known as the stone oaks and differ from Quercus primarily because they produce insect-pollinated flowers on erect spikes and the female flowers have short styles with punctate stigmas. At current, around 340 species have been described, mostly restricted to Southeast Asia. Fossils show that Lithocarpus formerly had a wider distribution, being found in North America and Europe during the Eocene to Miocene epochs. The species extend from the foothills of the Hengduan Mountains, where they form dominant stands of trees, through Indochina and the Malayan Archipelago, crossing Wallace's Line and reaching Papua. In general, these trees are most dominant in the uplands (more than above sea level) and have many ecological similarities to the Dipterocarpaceae, the dominant lowland tree group.

The North American tanoak or tanbark oak (Notholithocarpus densiflorus) was previously included in this genus but recent evidence indicates the similarities in flower and fruit morphology are due to convergent evolution. Both genetic and morphological evidence demonstrate that the tanoak is a distant relative to Asian stone oaks, and therefore tanoak has been moved into a new genus, Notholithocarpus.

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  • Individual species are described in detail on www.asianfagaceae.com.
  • A full list of the species and their synonyms can be seen by entering Lithocarpus in the search box in the World Checklist
  • Flora of China Online includes descriptions of the 123 Chinese species