Mast (botany) some domestic animals consume. Mast is found in two forms. Mast is generated in large quantities during mast seeding events (or masting, mast events). Mast seeding is a population-level phenomenon that is hypothesized to be driven by economies of scale, weather, and resources. These pulses of resources drive ecosystem-level functions and dynamics. Tree species such as oak, hickory, and beech produce a hard mast—acorns, hickory nuts, and beechnuts. It has been traditional to turn pigs loose into forests to fatten on this form of mast. Other tree and shrub species produce a soft mast, such as raspberries, blueberries, and greenbriar.
Beech bark disease The woolly, white tufts and broad strips are the colonies of the beech scale insect that are formed in tiny crevices along the bark. An adult beech scale insect has a soft body, is yellow in color, ranges from 0.5 to 1.0 millimeter long, and has an elliptical shape. The beech scale insect also has a stylet that it uses to penetrate the bark of the tree for feeding purposes. There are no male beech scale insects and the female insects reproduce parthenogenetically. In mid to late summer, the beech scale insect lays its eggs and dies. The eggs are