- Betula occidentalis
Taxobox
name = "Betula occidentalis"
status = secure
image_width = 240px
image_caption = Foliage
regnum =Plant ae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis =Magnoliopsida
ordo =Fagales
familia =Betulaceae
genus = "Betula"
subgenus = "Betula"
species = "B. occidentalis"
binomial = "Betula occidentalis"
binomial_authority = Hook.
synonyms=
*"B. fontinalis" Sarg."Betula occidentalis (Water Birch"') is a species of
birch native to westernNorth America , inCanada fromYukon east to westernOntario and southwards, and in theUnited States from easternWashington east to westernNorth Dakota , and south to easternCalifornia , northernArizona and northernNew Mexico , and also possibly easternAlaska (but see below). It typically occurs along streams in mountainous regions.Flora of North America: [http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=233500259 "Betula occidentalis"] ]It is a
deciduous shrub or smalltree growing to 10 m high, usually with multiple trunks. Thebark is dark red-brown to blackish, 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 long and 1-4.5 cm broad, with a serrated margin and two to six pairs of veins, and a short petiole up to 1.5 cm long. Theflower s are wind-pollinatedcatkin s 2-4 cm long, the male catkins pendulous, the female catkins erect. Thefruit is 2-3 cm long and 8–15 mm broad, composed of numerous tiny winged seeds packed between the catkin bracts.Plants of British Columbia: [http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Betula+occidentalis "Betula occidentalis"] ] Jepson Flora: [http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?Betula+occidentalis "Betula occidentalis"] ]The identity of similar birches in eastern Alaska is disputed; some include them in "B. occidentalis", while others regard them as hybrids between "
Betula neoalaskana " and "Betula glandulosa ".References
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