''Rubus fruticosus'' L. is the

ambiguous Ambiguity is the type of meaning in which a phrase, statement or resolution is not explicitly defined, making several interpretations plausible. A common aspect of ambiguity is uncertainty. It is thus an attribute of any idea or statement ...

name of a European

blackberry The blackberry is an edible fruit produced by many species in the genus ''Rubus'' in the family Rosaceae, hybrids among these species within the subgenus ''Rubus'', and hybrids between the subgenera ''Rubus'' and ''Idaeobatus''. The taxonomy ...

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

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 the ...

'' in the rose family. The name has been interpreted in several ways: *The species represented by the

type specimen In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes th ...

of ''Rubus fruticosus'' L., which is also the type specimen of the genus ''Rubus''. This specimen is considered to match the species '' R. plicatus'', in ''Rubus''

subgenus In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between ...

''Rubus'',

section Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

''Rubus''. * Various species consistent with Linnaeus' original description of the species, which was based on a mixture of specimens now considered to match '' Rubus ulmifolius'' and ''R. plicatus'' *a species aggregate (group of similar species) ''Rubus fruticosus'' agg. (a '' nomen ambiguum'') that includes most (or rarely all) of a group called ''Rubus'' subgenus ''Rubus'' (or less often: ''Rubus'' section ''Rubus'' ensu latissimo): ** in a narrow sense, sometimes separated as the section ''Glandulosus'' (alternative name: subsection ''Hiemales''), with about 289

microspecies In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

. In this sense the species aggregate does not include the type of the genus ''Rubus''. ** in a broad sense: (1) (i) sections ''Glandulosus'' and ''Rubus'' ensu stricto(in non-British systems, these two sections are classified together as section ''Rubus'' ensu lato section Glandulosus being called subsection ''Hiemales'' and section Rubus ensu strictobeing called subsection ''Rubus'') or (ii) "most of" these sections; or (2) sections ''Glandulosus'', ''Rubus'' ensu strictoand ''Corylifolii''. Section ''Rubus'' ensu stricto(about 20 microspecies) are probably hybrids involving members of section ''Glandulosus'' with either '' R. idaeus'' or '' R. allegheniensis''. Section ''Corylifolii'' (about 24 microspecies) are probably hybrids involving members of section ''Glandulosus'' with '' R. caesius''. ** even more broadly, including all the taxa in the subgenus ''Rubus''

As used by various authors

Apart from the established meaning of ''Rubus fruticosus'' L. as ''R. plicatus'', the name ''R. fruticosus'' has been incorrectly applied to several species, including: * ''Rubus fructicosus'' Weihe & Nees, Rubi Germ. 24, 1822 -> Rubus montanus Lib. ex Lej., Fl. Spa 2: 317, 1813 (or part of ''Rubus montanus'') * ''Rubus fruticosus'' G.N.Jones -> '' Rubus vestitus'' Weihe * ''Rubus fruticosus'' L. ex Dierb. -> '' Rubus vulgaris'' Weihe & Nees * ''Rubus fruticosus'' Lour. -> '' Rubus cochinchinensis'' Tratt.

References

External links

* * {{Set index article, plants