| Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) Marshall, 1785 |
| Synonyms: Betula alba var. papyrifera, Betula papyracea, Betula pirifolia, Betula excels, Betula grandis, (see The Plant List for more synonyms), white birch (in North America) |
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Betula papyrifera is widely distributed in northern North America, from Alaska to Labrador and Newfoundland; isolated populations south to Colorado and North Carolina (Map). It prefers well drained soils, but also grows in saturated or rocky soils; in mixed and deciduous forests and woodlands, swamps, and muskeg; 300-900 m. This is an early-successional deciduous tree readily colonizing burned or logged sites, and abandoned fields. B. papyrifera grows to 20-25 m in height, 60-70 cm in diameter. The bark is creamy or chalky white, often peeling in thin, paper-like, layers. The leaves are alternate, ovate, with serrated margin; turn bright yellow color in autumn. The male flowers are in brownish pendulous catkins, 5-10 cm long; the female catkins are greenish, ca. 3-4 cm long; flowering from mid-April to June. The fruit is a winged achene (samara). Paper Birch is a short-lived species for a tree (usually 30-80 years).
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