Rubus anglocandicans

Rubus anglocandicans is a species of bramble endemic to England.

Rubus anglocandicans
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Rubus
Species:	R. anglocandicans
Binomial name
Rubus anglocandicans A.Newton

Description

Rubus anglocandicans is an arching shrub with a shiny, furrowed stem. The stem bears numerous robust prickles. Leaves invariably have 5 non-overlapping leaflets; these are hairless above and white felted below. Flowers are white.^[1]

Habitat and Distribution

Rubus anglocandicans is a plant of woodland edges, hedges and lowland heaths. Its native range stretches in a band from the Cotswolds north east to the Yorkshire coast.^[2]

Impact as an introduction

Rubus anglocandicans is widespread as an introduced plant in Australia. It is classified as a 'weed of national significance', due to its impact on areas of conservation and of forestry.^[3] In recent years, R. anglocandicans has declined in some regions of Australia; the plant pathogen Phytophthora bilorbang is believed to have some connection to this decline.^[4]

References

1. Edees, E.S., Newton, A. and Kent, D.H., 1988. Brambles of the British Isles. Ray Society.
2. Newton, A. and Randall, R.D., 2004. Atlas of British and Irish brambles. London: Botanical Society of the British Isles.
3. Evans, Katherine J.; Weber, Heinrich E. (2003). "Rubus anglocandicans (Rosaceae) is the most widespread taxon of European blackberry in Australia". Australian Systematic Botany. 16 (4): 527. doi:10.1071/SB02037.
4. Aghighi, Sonia; Hardy, Giles E. St. J.; Scott, John K.; Burgess, Treena I. (1 June 2012). "Phytophthora bilorbang sp. nov., a new species associated with the decline of Rubus anglocandicans (European blackberry) in Western Australia". European Journal of Plant Pathology. 133 (4): 841–855. doi:10.1007/s10658-012-0006-5. S2CID 17509177.