''Salix myrtillifolia'' is a species of flowering plant in the
willow family known by the common name blueberry willow. It is native to northern North America, where it occurs in
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
and much of Canada.
[Uchytil, Ronald J. 1992]
''Salix myrtillifolia''.
In: Fire Effects Information System, nline U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory.
This
willow
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...
is a
shrub with two growth
varieties
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
. Low blueberry willow (''S. m.'' var. ''myrtillifolia'') is a small shrub under tall. Tall blueberry willow is a larger shrub which grows upright and reaches a maximum height near . The plant is
dioecious, with male and female reproductive structures on separate individuals. The
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...
is a
catkin up to long.
[
This plant grows in coniferous forests in ]alpine climate
Alpine climate is the typical weather (climate) for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate.
Definition
There are multiple definitions o ...
s. The smaller variety grows in swampy areas such as black spruce muskegs. Tall blueberry willow often occupies riparian habitat, forming thicket
A thicket is a very dense stand of trees or tall shrubs, often dominated by only one or a few species, to the exclusion of all others. They may be formed by species that shed large numbers of highly viable seeds that are able to germinate in t ...
s along waterways. It is common along the Tanana and Yukon River
The Yukon River ( Gwich'in: ''Ųųg Han'' or ''Yuk Han'', Yup'ik: ''Kuigpak'', Inupiaq: ''Kuukpak'', Deg Xinag: ''Yeqin'', Hän: ''Tth'echù'' or ''Chuu k'onn'', Southern Tutchone: Chu Nìikwän, russian: Юкон, Yukon) is a major watercourse ...
s. It grows alongside many other willow species. It is a pioneer species
Pioneer species are hardy species that are the first to colonize barren environments or previously biodiverse steady-state ecosystems that have been disrupted, such as by wildfire.
Pioneer flora
Some lichens grow on rocks without soil, so ...
, colonizing areas covered in recently deposited alluvium, such as floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
s recently scoured by flood waters.[
]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7404907
myrtillifolia