Betula alleghaniensis | Betulaceae

Submission: Jacob Adler and Tasker Peacock

Natural History:

Yellow Birch boasts distinctive features that facilitate its identification throughout its expansive range from Newfoundland to Georgia. A notable characteristic is the luminous quality of the bark on branches and young stems, presenting a silvery-gray or yellowish-brown sheen in loose, horizontal layers akin to ribbons. As the tree matures, the bark transforms into sizable, dull gray or black plates. Winter unveils 3-4 pre-formed staminate catkins on shoots that blossom in early spring, complemented by yellowish to dark brown, somewhat hairy twigs that emit a mild and sweet birch aroma: noteworthy is the wintergreen taste exhibited by both buds and twigs. The leaves, which are 3-4 ½ inches in length, are alternately arranged, ovate, or nearly oblong, with doubly toothed leaf margins. The upper leaf surface showcases a dull, dark green hue with a hairy texture. These distinctive characteristics collectively serve as key markers for accurate Yellow Birch identification. Adaptable to diverse terrains, Yellow Birch thrives from Newfoundland to Georgia, flourishing in various stages of forest succession on well-drained loams, sandy loams, Spodosols, and Inceptisols. Soil factors influencing growth include texture, drainage, stone content, and fertility. In Michigan and Wisconsin, it thrives on glacial tills, outwash sands, lacustrine deposits, and various residual soils. Optimal growth in the Lake States occurs on well-drained and lacustrine soils capped with loess, showcasing elevation and aspect sensitivity in regions like the Green Mountains, where it excels on unstratified glacial till at lower elevations and northeast aspects as opposed to southwest aspects. 

As a result of its heavy, strong, close-grained, and even textured wood, yellow birch is the most important and valuable of the native birches as a quality hardwood. In regards to its ecological importance, yellow birch trees are extremely important for various types of wildlife, providing food for animals like White-tailed deer, Moose, Eastern Cottontail, Snowshoe Hare, Red Squirrel, American Beaver, North American Porcupine, and various types of birds who also use the tree as a breeding habitat. Because the small, upright cones of the yellow birch tree disintegrate slowly, its seeds provide a sustained food source for wetland birds like Pileated Woodpeckers, Fox Sparrows, Black-capped Chickadees, Pine Siskin, and Common Redpoll. Yellow birch is a favorite summer food of the yellow-bellied sapsuckers who extract the sap of the tree. After pecking and drilling quarter-inch holes in neatly arranged rows around the trunk or limbs of the tree, the bird will use its tongue to draw out sap that has subsequently filled the holes. Such extensive feeding on both yellow birches and paper birches from sapsuckers can result in reduced growth, inferior wood quality, or even the death of the tree. 

References:

Burns, R.M. and Honkala, B.H. 1990. Silvics of North America: 2. Hardwoods. Yellow Birch

Agriculture Handbook 654, USDA Forest Service, Washington DC.

Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry and Maine Forest Service. 2008. Forest Trees of Maine. Fourteenth Edition. Maine. Maine Forest Service. p. 92-93

Wild Adirondacks: Trees of the Adirondacks: Yellow Birch (Betula Alleghaniensis). [accessed 2023 Nov 30]. https://wildadirondacks.org/trees-of-the-adirondacks-yellow-birch-betula-alleghaniensis.html#:~:text=Pileated%20Woodpeckers%2C%20Fox%20Sparrows%2C%20Black,Sapsucker%20on%20its%20nesting%20grounds.