Prickly Gooseberry
Ribes cynosbati
Found in moist slopes, periglacial boulderfields, talus, grassy balds, especially at medium to high elevations. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
75
Strong
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- 2–4 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry to moist
Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source
Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- April to June
- Fruiting season
- July to September
JFMAMJJASOND
Not yet recorded · Spread
Recorded in 4 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
1 of 3
Cliffs, ledges and rocky summits
Forests on moist but not wet ground, such as rich slopes and ravines.
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
45CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Ribes
- Achatia distinctaDistinct Quaker
- Alcathoe caudataClematis Borer, Clematis Clearwing Moth
- Amphipyra pyramidoidesMiranda Underwing, Copper Underwing, Copper Amphipyra
- Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
- Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
- Archips purpuranaOmnivorous Leafroller Moth
- Automeris ioIo Moth
- Biston betulariaSalt-and-Pepper Geometer, Cleft-Headed Looper
- Carposina fernaldanaCurrant Fruitworm Moth
- Cepphis armatariaScallop Moth
Show all 45
- Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
- Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
- Crocigrapha normaniNorman's Quaker
- Dichorda iridariaShowy Emerald
- Ectropis crepusculariaThe Small Engrailed, Saddleback Looper
- Erannis tiliariaLinden Looper Moth, Western Winter Moth, Lime Looper
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Eutrapela clematariaCurved-Tooth Geometer, Purplish Brown Looper
- Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
- Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
- Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
- Iridopsis ephyrariaPale-Winged Gray
- Iridopsis humariaSmall Purplish Gray
- Iridopsis larvariaBent-Line Gray
- Lambdina fiscellariaHemlock Looper, Western Oak Looper
- Limenitis arthemisBanded Purple, Red-Spotted Admiral
- Lithacodes fasciolaYellow-Shouldered Slug
- Macaria subcessariaBarred Angle, Barred Granite
- Malacosoma americanaEastern Tent Caterpillar
- Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
- Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
- Orthosia hibisciSpeckled Green Fruitworm Moth, Speckled Green Quaker
- Orthosia rubescensRuby Quaker
- Papaipema cataphractaBurdock Border, Potato-Stalk Borer
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
- Prochoerodes lineolaLarge Maple Spanworm Moth
- Protoboarmia porcelariaPorcelain Gray, Dashedlined Looper
- Pseudopostega quadristrigellaGooseberry Barkminer
- Pyrrharctia isabellaIsabella Tiger Moth, Banded Woolybear
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Synchlora aerataWavy-Lined Emerald, Camouflaged Looper
- Xanthotype urticariaFalse Crocus Geometer
- Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
- Carposina ottawana
11BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Ribes
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
12BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Ribes
- Alectoris chukarChukar
- Aphelocoma californicaCalifornia Scrub-Jay
- Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
- Dendragapus obscurusDusky Grouse
- Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
- Sialia currucoidesMountain Bluebird
- Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
- Tympanuchus phasianellusSharp-tailed Grouse
- Tyrannus tyrannusEastern Kingbird
Show all 12
- Vireo griseusWhite-eyed Vireo
- Vireo olivaceusRed-eyed Vireo
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Grossulariaceae
- Soil pH
- Acidic
- Flower color
- White, yellow, green or brown
- Fruit begins
- July
- Fruit ends
- September
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “April to June” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “White, yellow, green or brown” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Fruit begins · “July” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Height · “2–4 feet” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Light · “Partial shade; Full shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil pH · “Acidic” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Also known as
Dogberry; Eastern Prickly Gooseberry
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | S1S2 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
In your garden
Will it fit your yard?
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Choose a county to begin.
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- FloraQuest: South Central (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications