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Wildlife, Animals, and Plants
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Introductory
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
ABBREVIATION :
AMEARB
SYNONYMS :
Amelanchier canadensis L.
SCS PLANT CODE :
AMAR3
COMMON NAMES :
downy serviceberry
Juneberry
shadbush
shadblow
sugarplum
TAXONOMY :
The currently accepted scientific name for downy serviceberry is
Amelanchier arborea (Michx.) Fern.( Rosaceae) [4]. Downy serviceberry
hybridizes with the following species [4]:
A. humilis Wieg.
A. canadensis (L.) Medic.
A. laevis Wieg.
A. bartramiana (Tausch) Roemer
Hybridization is common and usually produces fertile offspring. Authors
differ in their treatment of the hybrids [20].
LIFE FORM :
Tree, Shrub
FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS :
No special status
OTHER STATUS :
NO-ENTRY
COMPILED BY AND DATE :
S. A. Snyder, May 1992
LAST REVISED BY AND DATE :
NO-ENTRY
AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION :
Snyder, S. A. 1992. Amelanchier arborea. In: Remainder of Citation
DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION :
Downy serviceberry occurs from the southern tip of Newfoundland south to
the northern tip of the Florida Panhandle and west to southern Ontario
and Quebec, eastern Kansas, the eastern edge of Nebraska, and southern
Mississippi and Alabama. North of Virginia, it is found along the
coast, but from Virginia south it occurs inland [14].
ECOSYSTEMS :
FRES10 White - red - jack pine
FRES11 Spruce - fir
FRES13 Loblolly - shortleaf pine
FRES14 Oak - pine
FRES15 Oak - hickory
FRES17 Elm - ash - cottonwood
FRES18 Maple - beech - birch
FRES19 Aspen - birch
STATES :
AL AR CT DE FL GA IL IN IA KS
KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO NE
NH NJ NY NC OH OK PA RI SC TN
VT VA WV WI NB NF NS ON PE PQ
ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS :
ACAD ALPO BISO BLRI BUFF CAHA
CATO CHCH CUGA CUVA DEWA FIIS
FODO GATE GWMP GETT GRSM HOSP
INDU ISRO JOFL MACA MANA MORR
NATR NERI OBRI OZAR PIRO PRWI
SHEN SHIL SLBE WICR
BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS :
NO-ENTRY
KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS :
K097 Southeastern spruce - fir forest
K098 Northern floodplain forest
K099 Maple - basswood forest
K100 Oak - hickory
K101 Elm - ash forest
K102 Beech - maple forest
K103 Mixed mesophytic forest
K104 Appalachian oak forest
K106 Northern hardwoods
K109 Transition between K104 and K106
K110 Northeastern oak - pine forest
K111 Oak - hickory - pine
K112 Southern mixed forest
SAF COVER TYPES :
1 Jack pine
16 Aspen
25 Sugar maple - beech - yellow birch
26 Sugar maple - basswood
27 Sugar maple
28 Black cherry - maple
30 Red spruce - yellow birch
31 Red spruce - sugar maple - beech
34 Red spruce - Fraser fir
39 Black ash - American elm - red maple
42 Bur oak
52 White oak - black oak - northern red oak
53 White oak
55 Northern red oak
57 Yellow-poplar
59 Yellow-poplar - white oak - northern red oak
60 Beech - sugar maple
61 River birch - sycamore
62 Silver maple - American elm
64 Sassafras - persimmon
65 pin oak - sweet gum
75 Shortleaf pine
76 Shortleaf pine - oak
97 Atlantic white-cedar
108 Red maple
109 Hawthorn
110 Black oak
SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES :
NO-ENTRY
HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES :
NO-ENTRY
VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE :
In areas where downy serviceberry grows big enough, it is used for
pulpwood [21].
IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE :
At least 40 bird species and several dozen mammal species eat the fruit
of the Amelanchier genus. Mammals that use downy serviceberry include
squirrels, chipmunks, mice, voles, foxes, black bears, and elk [12,17].
PALATABILITY :
NO-ENTRY
NUTRITIONAL VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
COVER VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES :
NO-ENTRY
OTHER USES AND VALUES :
NO-ENTRY
MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
Downy serviceberry is the preferred food of the gypsy moth (Lymantria
dispar) during its larval stages [6]. Downy serviceberry has been known
to increase in number and density after defoliation from gypsy moths
[8].
Mistblown Roundup applied in late summer or early fall kills downy
serviceberry [24].
BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS :
Downy serviceberry is a tall, deciduous shrub or small tree, growing up
to 30 feet (9 m) or more [20]. Its trunk is about 16 inches (40 cm) in
diameter [4]. The maximum recorded height and diameter for downy
serviceberry is 70 feet (21 m) high and 2 feet (0.6 m) d.b.h. [14]. Its
branches are purplish when young but turn grey at maturity. Leaves are
alternate and simple with serrate margins. They are almost twice as
long as broad. Flowers are white, and the berrylike pomme fruit is dark
red to purple [20]. There are 4 to 10 seeds per fruit [1].
RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM :
Microphanerophyte
Nanophanerophyte
Hemicryptophyte
REGENERATION PROCESSES :
Downy serviceberry regenerates mainly by seed, but it also sprouts from
the roots [14]. Seeds are dispersed by birds and mammals; bird
ingestion of seeds is an important scarification process [17]. Seeds
should be collected soon after ripening before animals eat them. Seeds
can be washed from the fruits by mashing them with water. There is an
average of 80,000 cleaned seeds per pound (176,000 kg). Seeds should be
dry stored at 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 deg C) in sealed containers.
Seeds can be sown in either fall or spring after 2 to 6 months of cold
stratification, but they will not usually germinate until after the
second spring [1].
SITE CHARACTERISTICS :
Downy serviceberry grows on a variety of sites from swampy lowlands to
dry woods and sandy bluffs. It also grows on rocky ridges, forest
edges, and open woodlands and fields [20,23]. In the mixed hardwoods of
Appalachia, downy serviceberry may compete better with other species in
stands on low quality sites [21].
Downy serviceberry grows in red spruce (Picea rubens)-Fraser fir (Abies
fraseri) forests of the mountainous Southeast. Here it grows in
association with yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis), mountain ash
(Sorbus americana), elderberry (Sambucus pubens), and hobblebush
(Viburnum alnifolium) at elevations between 4,950 and 6,600 feet
(1,500-2,000 m). Soils in these types are moderately drained
Inceptisols with a thick organic horizon and a low pH [2].
In the Midwest downy serciceberry grows with boxelder (Acer negundo),
sugar maple (A. saccharum), white oak (Quercus alba), black ash
(Fraxinus nigra), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), shagbark hickory
(Carya ovata), and American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana). Soils here
are well-drained silty clay loam and poorly drained silt loams [13].
Some understory associates include lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium
angustifolium), penstemon (Penstemon canescens), raspberry (Rubus spp.),
greenbrier (Smilax spp.), and witch-hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) [7,8].
SUCCESSIONAL STATUS :
Downy serviceberry is a late successional to climax species in
mixed-hardwood forests of the central United States [13].
SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT :
In the northern part of its range, downy serviceberry flowers at the
same time its leaves emerge in April and May. Fruits are produced in
June and July [20]. In southern parts of its range, downy serviceberry
flowers in March and produces fruit from June through August [1,4].
FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS :
Downy serviceberry can sprout from root crowns and stumps following fire
[19]. Some reestablishment from seed dispersed from off-site may also
occur.
POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY :
survivor species; on-site surviving root crown
off-site colonizer; seed carried by animals or water; postfire yr 1&2
FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT :
Fire top-kills downy serviceberry [19].
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT :
August burning of slash piles in the forest of lower Michigan killed
most of the downy serviceberry on the site [19]. Stumps and roots
sprouted the following year, but much of downy serviceberry found on the
site was established from seed dispersed by birds and mammals. Studies
in Pennsylvania showed contradictary results in the closely related
species, Amelanchier canadensis [9]. A. canadensis was not present on
burned sites until more than 15 years following fire but was prolific on
unburned sites.
PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE :
Downy serviceberry will recolonize sites following fire [18,19].
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE :
Following wildfire in a spruce-fir forest of Appalachia, downy
serviceberry was present in stands after 30 years, but was less than 1
percent of the total basal area. Specific effects of the fire on downy
serviceberry were not studied [18]. For fire information on related
species, see FEIS DATABASE: AMELANCHIER ALNIFOLIA.
FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
NO-ENTRY
REFERENCES
SPECIES: Amelanchier arborea | Downy Serviceberry
REFERENCES :
1. Brinkman, K. A. 1974. Amelanchier Med. serviceberry. In: Schopmeyer, C.
S., technical coordinator. Seeds of woody plants in the United States.
Agric. Handb. 450. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Forest Service: 212-215. [7516]
2. Busing, Richard T.; Clebsch, Edward E. C.; Eagar, Christopher C.;
Pauley, Eric F. 1988. Two decades of change in a Great Smoky Mountains
spruce-fir forest. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 115(1): 25-31.
[4491]
3. Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and
Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p. [905]
4. Fernald, Merritt Lyndon. 1950. Gray's manual of botany. [Corrections
supplied by R. C. Rollins]. Portland, OR: Dioscorides Press. 1632 p.
(Dudley, Theodore R., gen. ed.; Biosystematics, Floristic & Phylogeny
Series; vol. 2). [14935]
5. Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others].
1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range
ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p. [998]
6. Gottschalk, Kurt W. 1988. Gypsy moth and regenerating Appalachian
hardwood stands. In: Smith, H. Clay; Perkey, Arlyn W.; Kidd, William E.,
Jr., eds. Guidelines for regenerating Appalachian hardwood stands:
Workshop proceedings; 1988 May 24-26; Morgantown, WV. SAF Publ. 88-03.
Morgantown, WV: West Virginia University Books: 241-254. [13950]
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trails in Shenandoah National Park, Virginia. Biological Conservation.
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8. Hix, David M.; Fosbroke, David E.; Hicks, Ray R., Jr.; Gottschalk, Kurt
W. 1991. Development of regeneration following gypsy moth defoliation of
Appalachian Plateau and Ridge & Valley hardwood stands. In: McCormick,
Larry H.; Gottschalk, Kurt W., eds. Proceedings, 8th central hardwood
forest conference; 1991 March 4-6; University Park, PA. Gen. Tech. Rep.
NE-148. Radnor, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service,
Northeastern Forest Experiment Station: 347-359. [15323]
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of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York:
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following large northern Rocky Mountain wildfires. In: Proceedings, Tall
Timbers fire ecology conference and Intermountain Fire Research Council
fire and land management symposium; 1974 October 8-10; Missoula, MT. No.
14. Tallahassee, FL: Tall Timbers Research Station: 355-373. [1496]
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vegetation and cervid use on oak-pine sites in Oklahoma Ouachita
Mountains. In: Nodvin, Stephen C.; Waldrop, Thomas A., eds. Fire and the
environment: ecological and cultural perspectives: Proceedings of an
international symposium; 1990 March 20-24; Knoxville, TN. Gen. Tech.
Rep. SE-69. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest
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in an old-growth, deciduous forest. Forest Ecology and Management.
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14. Preston, Richard J., Jr. 1948. North American trees. Ames, IA: The Iowa
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15. Raunkiaer, C. 1934. The life forms of plants and statistical plant
geography. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 632 p. [2843]
16. Robinson, W. Ann. 1982. Experimental taxonomy in the genus Amelanchier.
II: Do the taxa in the genus Amelanchier form an agamic complex?.
Rhodora. 84: 85-99. [17998]
17. Robinson, W. Ann. 1986. Effect of fruit ingestion on Amelanchier seed
germination. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 113(2): 131-134.
[4552]
18. Saunders, Paul R.; Smathers, Garrett A.; Ramseur, George S. 1983.
Secondary succession of a spruce-fir burn in the Plott Balsam Mountains,
North Carolina. Castanea. 48(1): 41-47. [8658]
19. Scheiner, Samuel M.; Sharik, Terry L.; Roberts, Mark R.; Vande Kopple,
Robert. 1988. Tree density and modes of tree recruitment in a Michigan
pine-hardwood forest after clear-cutting and burning. Canadian
Field-Naturalist. 102(4): 634-638. [8718]
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Sciences Misc. Publ. Toronto, ON: Royal Ontario Museum. 495 p. [12907]
21. Trimble, G. R., Jr. 1972. Reproduction 7 years after seed-tree harvest
cutting in Appalachian hardwoods. Res. Pap. NE-223. Upper Darby, PA:
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest
Experiment Station. 19 p. [10924]
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National list of scientific plant names. Vol. 1. List of plant names.
SCS-TP-159. Washington, DC. 416 p. [11573]
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724 p. [11472]
24. Wendel, G. W.; Kochenderfer, J. N. 1982. Glyphosate controls hardwoods
in West Virginia. Res. Pap. NE-497. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 7
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Index
Related categories for Species: Amelanchier arborea
| Downy Serviceberry
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