92 American Midland Naturalist Monograph No. 4 



Nyack Creek; Bowman Lake; Swiftcurrenl Lake; Crossley Lake; Olokomi Lake trail. 

 YELLOWSTONE, common: east entrance; near Beryl Spring; near Rustic Falls; south of 

 Norris Junction; near Mammoth Hot Springs; Crescent Hill. GRAND TETON, occasion- 

 al: Jackson Lake, 6,800 feet. GRAND CANYON, reported, but probably mistaken identity. 



11. Winter or Red Flowering Currant (Ribes sangmneum Pursh). — 

 A beautiful shrub 3 to 9 feet high, with slender, erect or spreading stems; 

 bark brownish, shreddy; leaves soft, with fine hairs, dark green above, often 

 whitish below, ly^ to 3 inches wide, with 3 to 5 broad lobes, the margins 

 finely toothed; flower tubes light pink to deep red, with 5 spreading lobes, 

 the tiny petals white; flowers borne in loose or rather dense several- to many- 

 flowered clusters 2 to 4 inches long; berries blue-black, with a bloom, more 

 or less glandular, dry and large-seeded but the flavor sweet and agreeable; 

 occurs on banks and rocky slopes in the mountains, often forming thickets. 

 This species is a handsome ornamental and is widely cultivated. 



Occurrence. — Olympic, common at the lower elevations: Duckabush River; Wild 

 Rose Creek, near Elwha River, 2,000 feet. MOUNT RAINIER, common: near White 

 River ranger station. CR,\TER LAKE, rare: lower Redblanket Creek at southwest corner 

 of park. 



12. Sierra Currant (Ribes nevadense Kell.). — Smooth, slender shrub 

 3 to 6 feet high; leaves 1^^ to 3 inches wide, roundish-heart-shaped with 3 to 

 5 short broad lobes, the margins finely toothed, green and smooth above and 

 below or finely hairy below; flowers reddish, with 5 erect lobes, borne in 

 spreading or drooping several- to many-flowered clusters, these 2 to 4 inches 

 long; berries blue-black with a bloom, somewhat sticky-hairy, about 1/3 inch in 

 diameter; occurs in the mountains of California at middle altitudes. 



Occurrence. — LASSEN: Manzanita Lake, 5,800 feet. YOSEMITE, 4,000 to 7,000 feet: 

 near Happy Isles, Yosemite Valley; Vernal Falls; Hetch Hetchy Valley; along road 

 to Glacier Point; Mariposa Grove of bigtrees; Peregoy Meadow; Isberg Pass trail. 

 KINGS CANYON: near Sphinx Creek; General Grant Grove. SEQUOIA, occasional, 6,000 

 to 7,000 feet: Giant Forest; Garfield Grove of bigtrees; Atwell Mill: west of Pano- 

 rama Point. 



13. Gooseberry Currant (Ribes motitigenum McCl.). — Low, freely- 

 branching shrub 1 to 4 feet high, the stems with 1 to several spines below the 

 leaves and usually prickly between (sometimes smooth) ; leaves small, 1/3 to 

 1 inch across, finely glandular-hairy, deeply divided into 3 to 5 lobes, the 

 margins toothed; flowers greenish or reddish-brown, saucer-shaped, with tiny 

 red petals, borne in several-flowered clusters; berries about I/4 inch in diameter, 

 bright red to purple, covered with gland-tipped hairs. This species is chiefly 

 a high mountain form, sometimes abundant along the edges of sub-alpine 

 meadows. The plant offers fair forage for deer and elk. The berries are 

 much relished by grouse and other birds and are occasionally collected for 

 pies. . (Syn. Ribes lentmii (Jones) Cov. &: Rose) . 



Occurrence. — LASSEN, common, 6,000 to 8,000 feet: Brokeoff Mountain; near 

 Sulphur Works; Diamond Peak on Loop Highway; Summit Lake; Eagle Peak; 

 shoulders of Lassen Peak. YOSEMITE, abundant, 8,000 to 11,000 feet: Mount Hoffman; 

 Mount Lyell; Tioga Pass; Donohue Pass; Mono Pass; Cathedral Pass trail; Starr 

 King Meadows; above Fletcher Lake; Porcupine Flat; Tuolumne Meadows; Gaylor 



