A graduate student set out to study the ecophysiology of white birch (Betula papyrifera) seedlings growing in clear cuts and forest under stories. In early June, after leaf flush, he prepared mineral soil beds, upon which he scattered thousands of tiny birch seeds, in both a clear-cut and an adjacent uncut, mature forest. Much to his chagrin, few seeds germinated in the uncut forest, while nearly all seeds germinated in the clear-cut. His dismay and confusion were compounded by the fact the % germination was fairly high under a neutral density shade cloth (white colored on top to prevent heat loading, black colored underneath) he set up in the clear-cut to simulate the understory environment. The shade cloth blocked all but 2% of the incident light. Can you reconcile the seemingly inconsistent behavior of birch seed in these different environments?