> My understanding was that the main theory behind "Mast years" of trees was that it is an evolutionary adaptation to overwhelm squirrels and such so that some

> My understanding was that the main theory behind "Mast years" of trees was that it is an evolutionary adaptation to overwhelm squirrels and such so that some acorns are not eaten, and survive to grow into trees. That was my understanding as well. > Are they claiming that female cicadas are the direct cause of mast years? I don't think so--at least, I took it to mean that the typical 2-5 year period between mast years could be thrown off due to an active cicada year, which itself is interesting and not something I'd ever heard before. > do we see different mast year patterns in trees that correlate to the local cicada patterns? It would be a great area of research! I've got a big bur oak in my back yard, I might start a log...haha.