Birch

From northern Europe, it was the last glaciation in the Pleistocene, known as the Würm, that brought the birch tree to Sicilian land. A journey that began in distant lands in ancient times, with the expansion of glaciers into the current temperate area.

It took about 60.000 years, an infinite amount of time for us, for this plant to adapt to the island’s lava soil at altitudes between 1.450 and 2.000 meters.

This specimen, similar to Betula pendula Roth, was named Betula Etnensis (later corrected to Aetnensis) by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque (Specchio delle Scienze, Palermo 1814) and spread unevenly over the volcano Etna.

Around the Sartorius Mountains, on the north-eastern slope of Etna, they can be admired in their white mantle in one of the most beautiful forests.

But their southernmost habitat in Europe is changing. Global warming is changing the face of the land.

Some birches are falling ill, beginning to wither away from the branches, as if they dried up, until the trunk dries out too. And they fall to the ground dead, their skin still glowing white.

Perhaps the birch seeds are preparing for another migration.