Range

N.E. Am., Newfoundland to Alabama

Ecology

"Eastern white pine provides food and habitat for numerous wildlife species. Songbirds and small mammals eat eastern white pine seeds. Snowshoe hares, white-tailed deer, and cottontails browse the foliage; the bark is eaten by various mammals. Pocket gophers graze the roots of seedlings and young trees.

Northeastern pine forests can support a rich community of breeding birds. Bald eagles build nests in living eastern white pine, usually at a main branch located below the crown top. Eastern white pine, especially those with broken tops, provide valuable habitat for cavity-nesting wildlife.

Young black bear cubs use large eastern white pine to climb to safety. In northeastern Minnesota, black bear mothers and cubs spent more than 95 percent of the time in April and May within 600 feet (180 m) of either an eastern white pine or an eastern hemlock larger than 20 inches (50 cm) in d.b.h..

Eastern white pine browse is of intermediate preference to white-tailed deer. Although available, it was not browsed by moose in Ontario." [1]

Equity: Cultural and Historical Significance

"The frequency of eastern white pine is lower in today's forests than in presettlement forests. Eastern white pine was heavily logged in the 1800's in the north-central United States. Regeneration after the early logging was poor because of the lack of seed trees and the destruction of remaining seedlings and saplings by fire. In the northeastern United States, eastern white pine temporarily increased in abundance through colonization of abandoned fields and pastures. Many of these stands reached commercial maturity by the early 1900's and were harvested. Hardwoods, which had invaded the understory, now dominate many of these old-field sites." [1]

Economics

"Eastern white pine is a valuable timber species in the eastern United States and Canada. The soft wood is of medium strength, easily worked, and stains and finishes well. It is used for doors, moldings, trim, siding, paneling, cabinet work, and furniture... Eastern white pine is used extensively for stabilizing strip-mine spoils, especially in northern Appalachian coal fields." [1]