Betula cordifolia that "Betula cordifolia" and "Betula papyrifera" hybridise, however this is unlikely given the more recent evidence of different chromosome numbers. The most conclusive method of identification is from chromosome analysis. Betula cordifolia Betula cordifolia (mountain paper birch, also known as mountain white birch or eastern paper birch) is a birch species native to Eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States. Until recently it was considered a variety of "Betula papyrifera" (paper birch), with which it shares many characteristics, and it was classified as "B. papyrifera" var." cordifolia" (Regel) Fern. "Betula cordifolia" is a deciduous tree that reaches heights of about
Beech bark disease to spread to the south and west. The first case of beech bark disease in the United States was reported in 1929 in Massachusetts. By 2004, the disease had spread as far west as Michigan and as far south as western North Carolina. For beech bark disease to occur, two components are required, an insect and a fungus. The beech scale insect, "Cryptococcus fagisuga", is invasive to North America and is host-specific, feeding exclusively on beech trees. It can be observed on the trunk and limbs of the tree as woolly, white tufts that will later develop into broad strips.