''Rubus leucodermis'', also called whitebark raspberry or blackcap raspberry, is a species of ''

Rubus ''Rubus'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae, with over 1,350 species. Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of these ...

'' native to western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

Description

''Rubus leucodermis'' is a

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

growing to , with prickly shoots. While the crown is perennial, the canes are

biennial Biennial means (an event) lasting for two years or occurring every two years. The related term biennium is used in reference to a period of two years. In particular, it can refer to: * Biennial plant, a plant which blooms in its second year and th ...

, growing vegetatively one year, flowering and fruiting the second, and then dying. As with other dark raspberries, the tips of the first-year canes (primocanes) often grow downward to the soil in the fall, and take root and form tip layers which become new plants. The

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are pinnate, with five leaflets on the leaves' hardy stems in their first year, and three leaflets on leaves on flowering branchlets with white (and infrequently light purple) flowers. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is diameter, red to reddish-purple at first, turning dark purple to nearly black when ripe. The edible fruit has high contents of

anthocyanin Anthocyanins (), also called anthocyans, are water-soluble vacuolar pigments that, depending on their pH, may appear red, purple, blue, or black. In 1835, the German pharmacist Ludwig Clamor Marquart gave the name Anthokyan to a chemical compo ...

s and

ellagic acid Ellagic acid is a polyphenol found in numerous fruits and vegetables. It is the dilactone of hexahydroxydiphenic acid. Name The name comes from the French term ''acide ellagique'', from the word ''galle'' spelled backwards because it can be ob ...

.Flora of North America ''Rubus leucodermis'' Douglas ex Torrey & A. Gray, 1840.
/ref> ''R. leucodermis'' is similar to the eastern black raspberry (''

Rubus occidentalis ''Rubus occidentalis'' is a species of ''Rubus'' native to eastern North America. Its common name black raspberry is shared with other closely related species. Other names occasionally used include bear's eye blackberry, black cap, black cap ras ...

'').

Taxonomy

Subdivision

Three

varieties Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

are recognized: *''Rubus leucodermis'' var. ''leucodermis'' – Alaska to Chihuahua *''Rubus leucodermis'' var. ''bernardinus'' Jepson – southern California *''Rubus leucodermis'' var. ''trinitatis'' Berger – southern California

Etymology

The name ''leucodermis'' means "white skin", referring to the white appearance of the stems because of a thick waxy coating on the surface.

Distribution and habitat

The species can be found from

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

southward along the

Pacific coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western or southwestern border, except for Panama, where the Pac ...

as far as

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

, and Chihuahua.

Ecology

The plant forms natural hybrids with other species in subgenus '' Idaeobatus''.

References

External links

* *
UC Photos gallery: ''Rubus leucodermis''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1386973 leucodermis Berries Flora of Alaska Flora of British Columbia Flora of California Flora of New Mexico Flora of Northwestern Mexico Flora of the Cascade Range Flora of the Northwestern United States Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Flora of the Southwestern United States Garden plants of North America Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Natural history of the Transverse Ranges Plants described in 1840 Flora without expected TNC conservation status