White oak acorns vs. red oak acorns

Hello, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension. Acorns are a favorite food for black bears in South Carolina; they prefer white oak acorns to red ones. Red oak acorns have higher levels of tannic acid, which has a sharp, unpleasant taste, to bears and people. When the Civil War blockade kept people in the South from getting coffee, they tried to come up with substitutes. Here is a quote from the Confederate Receipt Book, (they said receipt instead of recipe): “washing sound, ripe acorns in their shells, drying them, and parching them until they popped open.” The shells were then removed and the meats roasted with a little bacon fat. Other sources did specify using white oak acorns rather than those from red oaks. Hunters have tried making piles of acorns, but bears don’t eat them – they prefer to forage.