VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Betula glandulosa | Bog Birch 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Bog birch is only lightly to moderately browsed by most classes of
livestock.  Herbage production may be moderate to high in some bog birch
communities.  However, cattle tend to avoid the boggy soils associated
with this species, unless the soil becomes dry enough to walk on,
usually in late summer [9,18,29].

Bog birch is eaten by numerous wildlife species.  In the Jackson Hole
area of Wyoming, it is a preferred browse of many big game animals [1].
Moose, elk, and mule deer consumption may be moderate to heavy in both
summer and winter [12,32,33,46,65].  In Alaska, caribou eat the twigs
and leaves [60].  In Alaska and Canada, the snowshoe hare feeds heavily
on bog birch [50,64].  A study in the Yukon Territories found this birch
to be the most preferred browse of snowshoe hares.  When the hare
population peaked, over 80 percent of available bog birch twigs were
eaten during one winter [50].

Bog birch catkins, buds, and seeds are eaten by numerous bird species
including ptarmigan, sharp-tailed grouse, spruce grouse, ruffed grouse,
redpolls, pine siskin, chickadees, and kinglets [5,36,54,60].


PALATABILITY : 
The relish and degree of use shown by livestock and wildlife species for
bog birch in several western states is rated as follows [1,11,15,42,46,47].  

                         CA         CO    MT    OR    WY  

Cattle                  poor       fair  poor  poor  fair
Sheep                   poor-fair  fair  fair  ----  fair  
Horses                  poor       poor  poor  ----  fair
Goats                   poor-fair  ----  fair  ----  ----
Pronghorn               ----       ----  ----  ----  poor
Elk                     ----       ----  poor  ----  good
Moose                   ----       ----  good  ----  good
Mule deer               fair       ----  poor  ----  fair
White-tailed deer       ----       ----  poor  ----  poor
Small mammals           ----       ----  ----  ----  fair
Small nongame birds     ----       ----  ----  ----  good
Upland game birds       ----       ----  ----  ----  fair
Waterfowl               ----       ----  ----  ----  poor


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Bog birch's energy and protein value is rated as poor [11].


COVER VALUE : 
Bog birch presumably provides hiding cover for small birds and mammals
but is probably of little importance as cover for larger mammals due to
its small size.


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
This birch does not transplant easily and is of limited use for
rehabilitation [26].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
NO-ENTRY


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Grazing on wet soils inhabited by bog birch may make sites more
susceptible to surface or streambank erosion [29].

Related categories for Species: Betula glandulosa | Bog Birch