Ulmus Americana - Ecology

Ecology

The American elm occurs naturally in an assortment of habitats, most notably rich bottomlands, floodplains, stream banks, and swampy ground, although it also often thrives on hillsides, uplands, and other well-drained soils. On more elevated terrain, as in the Appalachian Mountains, it is most often found along rivers. The species' wind-dispersed seeds enable it to spread rapidly as suitable areas of habitat become available.

In the United States, the American elm is a major member of four major forest cover types: black ash-American elm-red maple; silver maple-American elm; sugarberry-American elm-green ash; and sycamore-sweetgum-American elm, with the first two of these types also occurring in Canada. A sugar maple-ironwood-American elm cover type occurs on some hilltops near Témiscaming, Quebec.

The leaves of the American elm serve as food for the larvae of various lepidopterans (butterflies & moths). See List of Lepidoptera that feed on elms.