Thunder God Thor

There are more than 600 species of oak in the world, more than 80 in North America and 19 different species of oak trees in Florida alone. Here is the trunk and telltale bark of a Quercus alba, the white oak, which is one of the preeminent hardwoods of eastern North America. It is a long-lived oak of the Fagaceae family, native to Eastern North America. Oak trees in Miami are everywhere and they serve as hosts to all sorts of plants and animals alike. They grow very large and tall and live a long, long time (hundreds of years.)

In Norse mythology, the oak was sacred to the thunder god, Thor. It is often speculated that the reason for this is that the oak – the largest tree in northern Europe – was the one most often struck by lightning. That, I can attest to. My oak tree was struck by lightning once but it survived. I love the beautiful flowering vine that lives on this oak tree. Can you see the green lizard?