An elder black birch

Published by espringer,

Black birch (betula lenta) is the bark that changes the most as the tree ages. The diameter of this trunk is almost two feet:



Only one patch of bark, on the lower portion of trunk, hints at the familiar horizontal strips of birch bark...

Looking up offers a bit more confidence:

See the shagging bark? Let's step back and zoom in:

Now there's the familiar horizontally-peeling bark pattern that we would have seen at eye level many years ago…
How many years? Supposedly, black birch has an average life span of 100 years. My guess is that this specimen is past that mark!