Salix athabascensis Raup
Athabasca willow
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Athabasca willow
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Dioecious shrubs, 0.6-1.3 m tall, not colonial; branches erect, flexible at base; twigs red-brown, hairy.
Leaves:
Alternate, simple, oblong, elliptic or lance- to egg-shaped, 2-5 cm long, 1-2 cm wide; lower surface glaucous, nearly smooth, hairs white, upper surface dull or shiny, smooth or sparsely long soft-hairy to nearly smooth, margins entire or glandular-dotted, bases rounded to pointed, tips pointed; leaf stalks without glandular dots at top; stipules rudimentary.
Flowers:
Unisexual, lacking sepals and petals, borne in catkins which flower as leaves emerge, the catkins stout, on leafy twigs; floral bracts pale, hairs wavy; female bracts persistent; stamens 2; ovaries 1, hairy; styles 0.5-1 mm long.
Fruits:
Capsules which split open to release the seeds, each of which is surrounded by a tuft of hairs; stalks 0.8-1.3 mm long.
Notes:
This species commonly hybridizes with S. pedicellaris.
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 Salix athabascensis
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) |
893 | 8 | 1514 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
4 | 0 | 72 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
255 | 10 | 320 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
6 | 2 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
B | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
43 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
BWBS | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
BWBS(15), ESSF(5), ICH(1), IDF(4), SBS(14), SWB(2) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Moist to wet fens, muskegs and bogs in the montane zone; infrequent in N and EC BC; N to E AK, S YT and S NT and E to N MB.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Salix fallax Raup
Salix pedicellaris var. athabascensis (Raup) Boivin