The Bear Oak is a member of the red oak group. This tree is also known as the Scrub Oak. The tree is small (7 feet, like a thick shrub) with a bole diameter of less than 9 inches. The trunk has dark bark. Leaves are less than five inches long with white hairs underneath. The acorns are less than an half-inch long with bowl-shaped caps. The twigs are hairy. The buds are small, blunt and hairless.

The growing region is from Virginia to Maine. Oak is a hardwood providing a major portion of the annual lumber in the United States. Oak trees are generally slow-growing and long-lived and tend to be relatively resistant to diseases and insects. Tannin is a major produce from oak bark.