Betula pubescens Ehrh.

Betula pubescens, commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species of deciduous tree, native and abundant throughout northern Europe and northern Asia, growing further north than any other broadleaf tree. It is closely related to, and often confused with, the silver birch, but grows in wetter places with heavier soils and poorer drainage; smaller trees can also be confused with the dwarf birch.

Source: Wikipedia

Synonyms 50

Betula alba, Betula ambigua, Betula andreji, Betula asplenifolia, Betula aurea, Betula baicalia, Betula borealis, Betula borysthenica, Betula broccembergensis, Betula browicziana, Betula canadensis, Betula carpatica, Betula caucasica, Betula celtiberica, Betula concinna, Betula coriifolia, Betula cryptocarpa, Betula czerepanovii, Betula dalecarlica, Betula friesii, Betula glabra, Betula glauca, Betula golitsinii, Betula hackelii, Betula harcynica, Betula jacutica, Betula krylovii, Betula lazistanica, Betula litwinowii, Betula lucida, Betula macrostachya, Betula major, Betula media, Betula megalocarpa, Betula megaloptera, Betula microdontia, Betula murithii, Betula nigricans, Betula odorata, Betula palmiformis, Betula platyodontia, Betula pontica, Betula recurvata, Betula rotundata, Betula sajanensis, Betula silvatica, Betula silvestris, Betula sokolowii, Betula stenocarpa, Betula subaequalis

709,922 GBIF occurrences
20,955 iNaturalist observations

Conservation status code

Conservation: status label

Least Concern

Conservation: population trend

Stable

Conservation: year assessed

2026

IUCN Red List page

https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/194521/209161468

Habitats

Threats

IUCN: population narrative

Common throughout Europe especially in upland areas (Blamey and Grey-Wilson 2003, Ohlemuller et al. 2006).

IUCN: habitat narrative

Downy Birch is a small deciduous broadleaved tree growing up to 20 metres tall with hairy leaves found in mixed woodlands, uplands and highlands, floodplains, as successional habitat on fens, mires and bogs, along streams and hill-side flushes, in peaty hollows, roadsides, and field boundaries. This tree grows in a variety of soil types but prefers wet, acidic, peaty soils. It is a generally short lived tree of wet woodland usually with alder, birch and willows as the predominant tree species. These woodlands occur on a range of soil types including nutrient-rich mineral and acid, nutrient-poor organic ones. It is able to rapidly colonise open unshaded areas, which have been burned such as open heathland and cut peat bogs. It is also planted widely in parks and urban areas (Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland 2023, Blamey and Grey-Wilson 2003, Maddock 2008).

IUCN: threats narrative

There are currently no major threats reported to affect this species. In the future, it may be negatively affected through the loss of climatically suitable areas and low climatic suitability of locations outside its current range which is likely to extend further north (Ohlemuller et al. 2006).

IUCN: conservation narrative

Some areas of wet woodland habitat are protected under Annex 1 of the EC Habitats Directive. However, birch bog woodland occurs widely in scattered stands across the United Kingdom (Maddock 2008). It is listed as Critically Endangered in the national red list of Croatia (Nikolić and Topić 2005), Vulnerable in Hungary (Király 2007), Near Threatened in Luxembourg (Colling 2005), but Least Concern in Denmark (NERI 2007), Estonia (eElurikkus 2023), France (MNHN and OFB 2003-2023), Norway (Solstad et al. 2021), Sweden (SLU ArtDatabanken 2023), Switzerland (Moser et al. 2002) and the United Kingdom (Cheffings and Farrell 2005). The species occurs in numerous protected areas (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN 2023) and is included in ex situ germplasm (EURISCO 2023), and living collections (BGCI 2023).

IUCN: rationale

European regional assessment: Least Concern (LC) EU 27 regional assessment: Least Concern (LC)Downy Birch (Betula pubescens) is a medium to large tree species with a palearctic distribution. The species is common throughout Europe and faces no major threats at this time. The species is used for timber, paper pulp, and medicinal purposes. Given its widespread distribution, stable populations and an absence of major threats, the species has been classified as Least Concern as it remains common throughout Europe.

Related species

Gallery

Caucasian Birch (Betula pubescens litwinowii)

northern birch (Betula pubescens pumila)