[3] The Talamanca oak, Quercus rapurahuensis Pittier ex Trel., distributed in Costa Rica and Panama, is now considered a synonym of Q.

[1][2] Quercus benthamii is a rare species, distributed in humid cloud forests from southern Mexico to western Panama.

It is also found in the montane cloud forest enclaves in Central America – Guatemala at 2,100 meters elevation, El Salvador at 2,500 m, Honduras from 1,800 to 2,800 meters elevation, Nicaragua from 450 to 1,700 meters elevation, Costa Rica at 2,400 m, and western Panama at 2,100 m. The estimated area of occupancy (AOO) for Q. benthamii is 584 km2, which may be an under-estimate.

Its population trend is not known, but its habitat has been subject to continuous human disturbance across much of its range.

Threats include over-extraction of timber and firewood, cattle grazing, human-caused fires, and conversion of forest to pasture and coffee plantations.