Wax currant is an unarmed, much-branched shrub, mostly less 

 than 5 feet high, with numerous rather small (three-eighths to l 1 ^ 

 inches wide) leaves, borne principally at the ends of short, spurlike 

 twigs. The specific name cerewm is a Latin adjective meaning waxy, 

 or waxen, and refers to the waxy glands on the leaves. The bush 

 is common on dry, open slopes and ridges, and locally is often the 

 dominant woody plant, although as a rule it does not form dense 

 stands. This species ranges from British Columbia to California, 

 Arizona, and Montana, being one of the most widely distributed of 

 western currants. Its altitudinal range is wide; it occurs in the 

 upper desert, pinon- juniper, ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, and 

 aspen belts, where it is common in partial shade of these woody 

 plants, although it probably never grows in dense shade. It is fre- 

 quently associated with such shrubs as big sagebrush (Artemisia 

 tridentata) , bitterbrush (Purshfa tridental CL), chokecherries (Pi^miim 

 spp.), serviceberries (Anielanchier spp.), and rabbitbrushes (Chrtjso- 

 thamnus spp.). The bitterbrush-wax currant association is ex- 

 tremely common in the Northwest and in the eastern foothills of the 

 central Rocky Mountains, although in the latter region sagebrush 

 and rabbitbrush usually are also present in greater or less amounts. 

 In the Great Basin and the Southwest, the chokecherries and serv- 

 iceberries are more commonly associated with wax currant, although 

 by no means its only companions. 



*The palatability of wax currant, as a rule, is not high, seldom 

 being more than poor or fair, especially during the spring and sum- 

 mer. However, the abundance of this plant and the large amount 

 of herbage produced by this species are sufficient sometimes to class 

 it as a rather important factor in the carrying capacity of the range. 

 Furthermore, its rounded growth habit and freedom from spines 

 and the fact that it usually grows in open stands are conducive to 

 utilization. 1 Chemical analyses tend to indicate that wax currant is 

 nutritious, and has a high protein content. 2 Deer and elk utilize 

 the twigs of this species to some extent for winter forage. The small 

 bright red berries are sometimes utilized by Indians, but are not 

 well flavored; however, they are extensively consumed by birds and 

 rodents. 



Squaw currant (R. ine f ~bri<m,s) , also known as rock currant and 

 wine currant, is a closely related, very similar species, which occurs 

 in the Rocky Mountains and eastward, ranging from South Dakota 

 to western Nebraska, New Mexico, central California, and Idaho. It 

 may be associated with wax currant and appears on similar sites; 

 these two species have about the same palatability. The flowers of 

 squaw currant are usually pinkish, and the oblong or diamond- 

 shaped bracts of the flower stalks are entire- or few-toothed ; in con- 

 trast, the flowers of wax currant are chiefly whitish and the bracts 



are wedge-shaped to reverse egg-shaped and usually lobed or toothed 

 near the apex. 



1 Dayton, W. A. IMPORTANT WESTERN BROWSE PLANTS. U. S. Dept. Agr. Misc. Pub. 



2 '[ Wilson," N. U E., Dinsmore, S. C., and Kennedy, P. B.] NATIVE FORAGE PLANTS AND 

 THEIR CHEMICAL COMPOSITION. Nev. Agr. Expt. Sta. Bull. 62, 41 pp., illus. i 



