VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Symphoricarpos occidentalis | Western Snowberry 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Western snowberry is a valuable forage species for mule deer,
white-tailed deer, elk, and pronghorn [2,34,61,80,117].  It is browsed
by white-tailed deer in Montana and constituted 60 percent of
white-tailed deer early winter diets in 1965.  Western snowberry was
found in 95 percent of all rumens and averaged 27 percent of rumen
volume year-round [2].  In North and South Dakota western snowberry is
an important browse species in mule deer and pronghorn fall and winter
diets [72,104,141].  In Saskatchewan western snowberry is browsed by
pronghorn and constituted 17 percent of pronghorn diets from October 30
to November 3, 1960 [34].

In Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota, western snowberry fruits are
eaten by sharp-tailed grouse, passerine birds, and small mammals
[35,39,96,114].  In the northern Great Plains, the fruit of western
snowberry is an important fall and winter food for sharp-tailed grouse
[39].  In Wyoming sharp-tailed grouse feed on western snowberry fruits
[87].  In Alberta snowshoe hares browse western snowberry [93].

In Utah and Idaho western snowberry is important winter forage for
cattle [94,112].  In North Dakota cattle make limited use of western
snowberry [72].  In Nebraska western snowberry is poor forage for cattle
and fair for sheep [117].  In Montana forage production under dense
thickets of western snowberry is low; as stands open up, forage
production increases due to invasion by Kentucky bluegrass [56].


PALATABILITY : 
Palatability ratings for western snowberry are as follows [19,35]:

            CO       MT       ND       UT       WY

cattle     fair     fair     fair     poor     fair
sheep      fair     fair     fair     fair     fair
horses     fair     poor     fair     poor     fair
deer       ----     good     ----     ----     ----
elk        ----     good     ----     ----     ----


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Western snowberry nutritional values are rated as follows [35]:

                         UT       CO       WY       MT       ND

elk                     good     poor     fair     fair     ----
mule deer               good     poor     fair     good     fair
white-tailed deer       ----     ----     good     good     fair
pronghorn               ----     ----     fair     fair     fair
upland game birds       good     ----     good     fair     fair
waterfowl               poor     ----     poor     ----     poor
small nongame birds     fair     ----     good     fair     ----
small mammals           good     ----     good     fair     ----

Western snowberry energy rating and protein content are fair [19,35].
In Alberta percent digestible protein of dry matter at leaf stage,
heading stage, and seed ripe stage was 4.0, 1.8, and 1.0, respectively
[14].  In Saskatchewan crude protein content of western snowberry browse
was 7.9 percent in February, 25.1 percent in May, 12.3 percent in June,
10.2 percent in July, and 15.2 percent in September [34].  


COVER VALUE : 
Western snowberry cover values are rated as follows [19,35]:

                         CO       MT       ND       UT       WY

elk                     ----     poor     fair     ----     poor
mule deer               ----     fair     good     fair     poor
white-tailed deer       poor     good     ----     ----     fair
pronghorn               ----     fair     good     ----     fair
upland game birds       ----     good     good     good     good
waterfowl               ----     good     fair     poor     poor
small nongame birds     ----     good     good     good     good
small mammals           ----     good     ----     good     good

Dense thickets of western snowberry provide important thermal and hiding
cover for wildlife [56,114,130].  In South Dakota western snowberry
provides cover for wild turkeys [102].  In the northern Great Plains,
western snowberry provides nesting cover for sharp-tailed grouse, upland
waterfowl, and many species of passerine birds [30,51,72,78].  In North
Dakota 68 percent of mallard nests were on sites dominated by western
snowberry [30].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Western snowberry adapts well to disturbed or degraded sites [95,114].
It is used for erosion control, wildlife habitat enhancement, and land
reclamation [56,94,130].  Nursery-grown stock and rooted cuttings
readily establish on disturbed sites and once established, western
snowberry is a good soil stabilizer [19,56,95,114].  Western snowberry
is recommended for planting in riparian areas [83,95].  In Colorado
western snowberry is a high priority species for oil shale restoration
[130].  


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Plains Indians used western snowberry for food, implement-making, and
eye disease treatment [94].  Western snowberry is planted as an
ornamental [127].  


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Western snowberry increases with heavy grazing pressure [7,51,69].  In
North Dakota western snowberry was more abundant on grazed green ash
sites than on adjacent ungrazed sites [47].  At the Central Grasslands
Research Station in North Dakota, 5 years of cattle grazing under
various management strategies and stocking rates did not consistently
alter the structure or composition of western snowberry communities
[72].  

Land management practices that promote or maintain sizeable tracts of
western snowberry will favor higher densities and species richness of
passerines [7].  In South Dakota the preservation of western snowberry
thickets will improve wild turkey nesting habitat [135].  

Western snowberry is susceptible to insect parasites and root rot fungi
[94].  According to Watson [131], western snowberry is susceptible to
herbicide damage.  Western snowberry is effectively controlled with
multiple applications of dicamba plus 2,4-DE [22].  

Related categories for Species: Symphoricarpos occidentalis | Western Snowberry