Betula occidentalis
Betula occidentalis, the water birch or red birch, is a species of birch native to western North America, in Canada from Yukon east to Northwestern Ontario and southwards, and in the United States from eastern Washington east to western North Dakota, and south to eastern California, northern Arizona and northern New Mexico, and southwestern Alaska. It typically occurs along streams in mountainous regions,[1] sometimes at elevations of 2,100 metres (6,900 feet) and in drier areas than paper birch.[2]
| Betula occidentalis | |
|---|---|
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| Foliage | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fagales |
| Family: | Betulaceae |
| Genus: | Betula |
| Subgenus: | Betula subg. Betula |
| Species: | B. occidentalis |
| Binomial name | |
| Betula occidentalis | |
 | |
| Natural range of Betula occidentalis | |
| Synonyms | |
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It is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing to 14 m (46 ft) high, up to 25 centimetres (10 inches) thick.[2] It tends toward epicormic growth, with many small limbs sprouting from the trunk and causing the wood to be full of small knots. The bark is dark red-brown to blackish,[2] and smooth but not exfoliating. The twigs are glabrous or thinly hairy, and odorless when scraped. The leaves are alternate, ovate to rhombic, 1–7 cm (1⁄2–2+3⁄4 in) long and 1–4.5 cm (1⁄2–1+3⁄4 in) broad, with a serrated margin and two to six pairs of veins, and a short petiole up to 1.5 cm (1⁄2 in) long. The flowers are wind-pollinated catkins 2–4 cm (3⁄4–1+1⁄2 in) long, the male catkins pendulous, the female catkins erect. The fruit is 2–3 cm (3⁄4–1+1⁄4 in) long and 8–15 millimetres (1⁄4–1⁄2 in) broad, composed of numerous tiny winged seeds packed between the catkin bracts.[1][3][4]
The identity of similar birches in Alaska is disputed; some include them in B. occidentalis, while others regard them as hybrids between Betula neoalaskana and Betula glandulosa.[1]
The foliage is browsed by sheep, goats,[5] and birds; some small birds also consume the seeds.[2]
Some Plateau Indian tribes used water birch to treat pimples and sores.[6]
References
- Flora of North America: Betula occidentalis
- Arno, Stephen F.; Hammerly, Ramona P. (2020) [1977]. Northwest Trees: Identifying & Understanding the Region's Native Trees (field guide ed.). Seattle: Mountaineers Books. pp. 215–220. ISBN 1-68051-329-X. OCLC 1141235469.
- Plants of British Columbia: Betula occidentalis Archived 2017-12-06 at the Wayback Machine
- Jepson Flora: Betula occidentalis
- Little, Elbert L. (1980). The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees: Eastern Region. New York: Knopf. p. 368. ISBN 0-394-50760-6.
- Hunn, Eugene S. (1990). Nch'i-Wana, "The Big River": Mid-Columbia Indians and Their Land. University of Washington Press. p. 352. ISBN 0-295-97119-3.
Further reading
- Saliendra, NicanorZ.; Sperry, JohnS.; Comstock, JonathanP. (1995). "Influence of leaf water status on stomatal response to humidity, hydraulic conductance, and soil drought in Betula occidentalis". Planta. 196 (2). doi:10.1007/BF00201396. ISSN 0032-0935. S2CID 40158479.
- Sperry, J. S.; Pockman, W. T. (1993). "Limitation of transpiration by hydraulic conductance and xylem cavitation in Betula occidentalis". Plant, Cell and Environment. 16 (3): 279–287. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3040.1993.tb00870.x. ISSN 0140-7791.
- Sperry, J. S.; Saliendra, N. Z. (1994). "Intra- and inter-plant variation in xylem cavitation in Betula occidentalis". Plant, Cell and Environment. 17 (11): 1233–1241. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3040.1994.tb02021.x. ISSN 0140-7791.
- Sperry, John S (2000). "Hydraulic constraints on plant gas exchange". Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. 104 (1): 13–23. doi:10.1016/S0168-1923(00)00144-1. ISSN 0168-1923.
External links
- "Betula occidentalis". Plants for a Future.
- Betula occidentalis in the CalPhotos photo database, University of California, Berkeley