It appears that the oak trees may be masting this year, meaning they are dropping a lot of acorns. At least it felt like I was walking on a bunch of marbles on my path through the woods today.  Weather conditions, such as spring frost, summer droughts and fall rains, play a big part on when oak trees produce a lot of acorn. The extra acorns means there might be some acorns not eaten and can germinate into trees as only about 1 in 10,000 becomes a tree.  But the downfall of the extra acorns can also mean a surge in populations of rodents, small mammals and deer, which in turn can lead to an increase in ticks causing a spike in Lyme disease the two years following a good acorn crop.

Extra Acorns