Betula neoalaskana Sarg.
Alaska paper birch (northwestern white birch; resin birch)
Betulaceae (Birch family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Alaska paper birch (northwestern white birch; resin birch)
Betulaceae (Birch family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Deciduous tree, 10-30 m tall; young twigs with yellowish, wartlike resin glands; bark thin, smooth, pale and papery.
Leaves:
Alternate, deciduous, wedge-shaped in outline, doubly saw-toothed, thin and membranous, glabrous below, usually 2.5-8 cm long; leaf stalks more than 1 cm long.
Flowers:
Male and female flowers in separate catkins 2-4 cm long; flowers emerging before or with the leaves; catkins breaking up at maturity.
Fruits:
Nutlets with broad wings, at least twice as wide as the body of the nutlet; bracts with rounded, lateral lobes.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Betula neoalaskana
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
712 | 305 | 1815 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
8 | 0 | 80 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
74 | 0 | 330 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
4 | 1 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
85 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
BWBS | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
BWBS(76), ESSF(1), ICH(1), SBS(1), SWB(2) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Wet bogs, fens, swamps or moist forest sites in the montane zone; frequent in NE BC; N to AK, YT and NT and E to ON.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Betula alaskana Sarg.
Betula papyrifera subsp. humilis (Regel) HultTn
Betula papyrifera var. humilis (Regel) Fern. & Raup
Betula papyrifera var. neoalaskana (Sarg.) Raup
Betula resinifera Britt.