American Sycamore Tree Bark - Platanus occidentalis

I went hiking today in search of sycamores because I was hoping to find some lace bugs under the bark. I found this huge sycamore tree that had fallen across a river. It appeared to have fallen months ago, and so I started picking off little chunks of bark as I balanced on the creaking ice. I didn't find any lace bugs, but I did notice this cool pattern that was on the underneath part of one section of bark. I'm assuming it's normal, but am not sure. the underside was yellow and looked like it had tiny flowers all over it. I have no clue what those little black "flowers" actually are...


These trees are massive and have very distinctive bark, which flakes off in irregular chunks, leaving the surface mottled. The bark flakes off because it is very rigid and lacks the elasticity that the bark of other trees have. So, it is incapable of stretching to accommodate the growth of the wood underneath and sloughs off the tree instead.

Habitat: Near a river in a deciduous forest.