Beech Mast

There appears to be a very high quantity of beech nuts on the ground this autumn known as mast.
Beech does not always produce ripe nuts but in mast years such as this year trees bear thousands of ripe nuts which provide a feast for wildlife.
We seem to be crunching over nuts everywhere on our woodland walks and even in the garden. It is not clear why mast years occur but weather may be a factor