Willow-leaved cotoneaster confirmed growing wild in Vancouver
iNaturalist: hkarlgren
Urban Ecology
If you've got a drought-tolerant hedge with small white flowers and clusters of red berries in fall, you might already be hosting this exact shrub, and knowing what it is helps you decide whether to keep feeding the birds with it or watch for it spreading where you don't want it.
Someone out walking in Vancouver found a Willow-leaved Cotoneaster and got the ID verified by other naturalists, making it a confirmed sighting. This shrub has long, narrow leaves like a willow, arching branches, and bright red berries that birds love in fall and winter. It's a common landscaping plant, but it can also escape gardens and grow on its own in the wild.
Key Findings
Observation reached 'research-grade' status on iNaturalist, meaning the species ID was confirmed by community consensus
Cotoneaster salicifolius is an evergreen to semi-evergreen shrub native to China, widely planted as an ornamental in North American cities
Species is known to naturalize and spread outside cultivation in parts of the Pacific Northwest, making citizen sightings useful for tracking its spread
chevron_right Technical Summary
A gardener in Vancouver spotted and confirmed a Willow-leaved Cotoneaster, a hardy ornamental shrub with arching branches and red berries that's widely planted in urban landscapes and valued by birds and pollinators.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Willow-leaved Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster salicifolius) observed in Vancouver
Research-grade observation of Willow-leaved Cotoneaster in Vancouver.
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Species Mentioned
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Cotoneaster salicifolius, the willow-leaved cotoneaster, is a drought-tolerant, evergreen to semi-evergreen, low-lying, small to medium-sized shrub with an arched branching habit. Specimens growing in the wild, however, are generally larger, averaging five meters in height. Although native to the...