Scientific Name : Ribes niveum
Author : Lindl.
NatureServe Explorer
Common Name : Snow Gooseberry
Current Research Activities
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Taxonomy
Grossulariaceae (currant family)
Ranks and Status
State Rank : S1
State Rank Reason : Ribes niveum is known from four occurrences in Fremont County, Colorado, USA; current threats are unknown.
U.S. Endangered Species Act : none
Colorado Threatened and Endangered List : none
Other Statuses : SWAP SGIN
Description and Phenology
General Description:
Spiny or occasionally unarmed shrubs. Spines 1- 3 (6) per node. Leaves reniform to broadly ovate, 3-5 lobed, glabrous or hairy. Sepals white or cream or occasionally pinkish, petals white, often with red veins. Berries yellow-green to blue-black (Ackerfield 2015).
Look Alikes:
Ribes inerme has shorter, glabrous, inconspicuous stamen filaments (2-3 mm long). Ribes niveum filaments are conspicuously exserted, hairy, and 6-9 mm long (Ackerfield 2015, Weber and Wittmann 2012).
Phenology:
Flowering April-May; fruiting June-July (Colorado Natural Heritage Program 2012, Ackerfield 2015).
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Habitat
Along creeks and streams. Associated species have not been noted in Colorado.
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Elevation Range:
6,081 - 7,097 feet (1,854 - 2,163 meters)
Distribution
Colorado Endemic:
No
Range:
Ribes niveum is known from four locations in Fremont County, Colorado. Estimated range extent in Colorado of 40 square kilometers was calculated in GeoCAT using occurrence data provided by the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (2023). This species can also be found in Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. This species is disjunct in Colorado.
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Threats and Management Issues
Management and protection issues have not been identified for this species in Colorado.
References
- Ackerfield, J. 2015. Flora of Colorado. BRIT Press, Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Fort Worth, TX. 818 pp.
- Chumley T. and R. L. Hartman. 1997. Report on a General Floristic Survey of the Vascular Plants of East-central Colorado. Rocky Mountain Herbarium, University of Wyoming, Laramie.
- Flora of North America Editorial Committee, ed. (FNA). 1993+. Flora of North America North of Mexico. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, Oxford.
- USDA, NRCS. 2022. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.
- Weber, W. A. and R. C. Wittmann. 2012. Colorado Flora, Eastern Slope, A Field Guide to the Vascular Plants, Fourth Edition. Boulder, Colorado. 555 pp.
