VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Acer grandidentatum | Bigtooth Maple 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
Bigtooth maple is cut for firewood.  The wood is heavy and hot burning
[35,67].  


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Bigtooth maple provides browse for big game and livestock species but is
normally only consumed in small or moderate amounts [16,32,59].  The
U.S. Department of Agriculture [66] reports that where bigtooth maple is
a minor part of the vegetation, it is browsed heavily by game and
livestock.  In Texas, it is browsed only occasionally by cattle [67].
Bigtooth maple is an important food source for moose in southeastern
Idaho and considered a key browse species [56].  Lower elevation Gambel
oak-bigtooth maple communities are regularly used by big game for winter
range [33].  The seeds, buds, and flowers of maples (Acer spp.) provide
food for numerous species of birds and small mammals.  Squirrels and
chipmunks eat the seeds, frequently storing them in caches after
removing the hull and wing [43].

In the mountain-brush zone of Utah, Gambel oak-bigtooth maple
communities provide good habitat for numerous species of birds which
nest there [27,42].  Numerous species of birds use maple leaves and seed
stalks for nest building [43].  Ruffed and blue grouse often breed and
rear their young in bigtooth maple stands in southeastern Idaho [60,61].

In Arizona and New Mexico, the white fir/bigtooth maple habitat type
typically occurs along stream courses.  These riparian areas are
considered high quality fish and wildlife habitat [23].  Many species of
wildlife including the Arizona gray squirrel, river otter, zone-tailed
hawk, common black-hawk, American dipper, summer tanager, Bullock's
oriole, yellow warbler, Arizona alligator lizard, Sonoran mud turtle,
and canyon tree frog are largely or totally dependent upon broadleaf
riparian woodlands in Arizona [10].  Bigtooth maple is often a component
of such woodlands.


PALATABILITY : 
The palatability of bigtooth maple to livestock and most big game
species appears to be poor to fair.  However, it is more palatable to
mule deer than is Gambel oak [52,58] and is therefore important on
Gambel oak-bigtooth maple winter range.

The relish and degree of use shown by livestock and wildlife species for
bigtooth maple in some western states is rated as follows [20,52,56]:

                         CO    ID    UT

Cattle                  ----  ----  poor
Sheep                   ----  ----  fair
Horses                  ----  ----  poor
Pronghorn               ----  ----  poor
Elk                     fair  ----  poor
Moose                   ----  good  ----
Mule deer               ----  ----  fair-good
Small mammals           good  ----  fair
Small nongame birds     ----  ----  poor
Upland game birds       ----  ----  ----
Waterfowl               ----  ----  poor


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
The crude protein content of bigtooth maple leaves was 9.5 percent when
collected in mid-September after tissue growth ceased but prior to the
first frost [70].

In vitro organic matter digestibility of leaves decreases as the growing
season advances.  Freeze-dried extrusa from esophogeal-fistulated sheep
fed maple leaves showed the following changes in digestibility
throughout the summer [11].  Freeze drying extrusa prior to analysis
results in more accurate nutritional values than either air or oven
drying [11].

               Phenological  
Date Fed       Description        %IVOMD

June 1         young leaves,       71.5
               fully developed
July 2         mature leaves       61.4
August 27      mature leaves       63.1
September 25   leaves senescent    61.3
October 3      fallen leaves       59.0


COVER VALUE : 
In general, maple thickets provide good hiding cover for big game
animals.  Mule deer favor such areas for bedding and hiding [35]. 

The mountain-brush zone provides nesting and protective cover for many
smaller wildlife species.  Several species of birds nest in bigtooth
maple-Gambel oak communities.  In the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, the
California quail, ring-necked pheasant, scrub jay, black-billed magpie,
black-capped chickadee, and rufous-sided towhee are all permanent
residents of these communities [42].  Black-billed magpies often nest in
maple thickets [35].

The degree to which bigtooth maple provides environmental protection
during one or more seasons for wildlife species is as follows [20]:

                         CO    UT
Pronghorn               ----  poor
Elk                     ----  good
Mule deer               ----  good
Small mammals           good  good
Small nongame birds     good  good
Upland game birds       ----  good
Waterfowl               ----  poor
                        


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Bigtooth maple is recommended for use in revegetating disturbed riparian
sites in the Intermountain region [47].  It is also suitable for
planting for wildlife cover and roadside stabilization in the aspen,
mountain-brush, and pinyon-juniper zones [52,66].  It has been proposed
for use in rehabilitating strip-mined lands and for planting on denuded
recreation sites [5].  It is best to transplant 2-year-old bare root
stock or container-grown seedlings in the early spring when dormant
[47].  Bigtooth maple can also be established from seed planted to a
depth of 0.5 inch (1.25 cm) in sunny areas if straw mulch is added [66].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Although not produced commercially, maple syrup can be made from the sap
of bigtooth maple.  It takes about 43 gallons of sap to produce 1 gallon
of syrup [7].  The syrup produced from bigtooth maple has a somewhat
milder flavor than sugar maple syrup [5].  In a human palatability test,
57 percent preferred sugar maple and 43 percent bigtooth maple syrup
[7].

Bigtooth maple is used in landscape plantings and is highly prized for
its autumn colors [7,66].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
In Arizona and New Mexico, bigtooth maple generally increases after
logging in white fir forests; however, even strong dominance by bigtooth
maple does not seem to inhibit conifer establishment [46].

Since mule deer prefer bigtooth maple over Gambel oak, managers may wish
to maintain maple stands in wintering areas [33].  Maintaining a
diversity of stand ages will benefit wildlife by providing a balance of
forage and cover.  Firewood cutting is probably the best method to
reduce bigtooth maple density in mature stands [9].

Related categories for Species: Acer grandidentatum | Bigtooth Maple