Obverse of leaves of Quercus ilex ssp. ilex –left- and Quercus ilex ssp ballota –right-. The grayish color of Quercus ilex ssp. ballota leaf is due to its dense set of short hairs. The leaves of both subspecies vary a lot. This variability is even more noticeable in Bages where the individuals with morphological traits between the two subspecies are common. [photo Florenci Vallès]