362 
Tunisia is the smallest of the cork- 
producing countries containing only 
4.6 percent of the total acreage from 
which 2.6 percent of the world’s sup- 
ply is obtained. The approximate 
235,000 acres of Tunisian cork oak 
forests are situated in the north- 
western coastal regions of Khrou- 
miria, the Nefzas, and the Mogods. 
Algeria is the third largest cork- 
producing country. It furnishes 13.8 
percent of the world’s tonnage from 
21.6 percent of the total acreage. The 
cork oak forests are located principally 
in the shore zone and Tell regions 
but there are some relatively small 
areas in the highlands. The 1,100,000 
acres of Algerian cork forests are dis- 
tributed as follows among its three 
Departments: Constantine, 89 per- 
cent; Algiers, 9.3 percent; and Oran, 
1.7 percent. 
In the Department of Constantine, 
the principal cork centers are LaCalle, 
Bona, Philippeville, Collo, Djidjelli, 
and Bougie. The cork oak forests are 
situated in Souk-Ahras, Little Kabylia, 
Sidi-Meroun, the Jebel (mountains) 
of Babors near Bougie, the forests 
of Bessombourg and Cheraia in the 
Goufi Mountains, in El Melia and 
Jemmapes near Philippeville, and in 
?Edough near Bona. 
In the Department of Algiers, the 
principal cork center is the city of 
Algiers. The cork oak areas are 
located in Bouira, in the forests of 
Drael-Mizan, Yakouren, and d’Azazga 
in Great Kabylia, and in the regions 
of Cherchel and Militana. 
In the Department of Oran, the 
principal cork oak forests are in the 
regions of the Sahel of Oran and 
Tlemcen. 
French Morocco is the fourth larg- 
est cork-producing country, contain- 
ing 14.6 percent of the world’s acreage 
from which 6.3 percent of the total 
tonnage is obtained. The cork-pro- 
ducing regions constituting its 741,000 
acres are located in the forests of Bab 
Azhar near Taza, the Sehouls near 
Sale, and the Mamora, Gharb near 
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1948 
Moulay Bou-Selham, and Boulhart; 
and in the groves of Zemmour near 
Tedders, Harcha, Oulmes, Ouldjet 
Soltane, the Zaer near Marchand, 
the M’Dakra near Boucheron, the 
Achach, the Gnadis, and the region 
of Moulay Bou Azza. 
Spanish Morocco is not a cork- 
producing country at the present time. 
Its economic position is that of the 
potential rather than the actual. The 
cork-growing areas, which constitute 
1.4 percent of the world acreage, 
have not been put into production 
since the second Riff war, owing to 
disputes among tribes, individuals, and 
the Moorish state, about ownership. 
Its production potentiality has been 
estimated at approximately 6,600 short 
tons per annum which would be 
equivalent to 2.3 percent of the world 
production. 
The approximate 74,000 acres of 
cork oaks are distributed among some 
eight forest patches mainly along the 
line of the Riff Mountains. 
Climatic Distribution of the Cork Oak 
By reason of its being native to the 
Mediterranean region the cork oak, 
like all natural vegetation, grows in 
response to the combined effect of the 
three most essential climatic elements 
prevailing in that region, namely: 
temperature, rainfall, and __ soil. 
Therefore, each of these elements was 
studied separately in order to ascer- 
tain its function in the distribution 
and growth of the cork oak. 
Temperature is perhaps the most 
important of all the climatic factors 
because it influences and regulates 
every chemical and physical process 
which is necessary for establishment 
and survival. We know that there 
are three cardinal growth tempera- 
tures which vary in magnitude de- 
pending upon the particular species 
and variety of plant. There is the 
minimum temperature below which 
growth is impossible, the maximum 
temperature beyond which growth 
