[Wikipedia] Range, Fruit, Varieties: Ribes californicum, with the common name hillside gooseberry,[3] is a North American species of currant. It is endemic to California, where it can be found throughout many of the California Coast, Transverse, and Peninsular Ranges in local habitat types such as chaparral and woodlands.[4] The fruit is an edible red berry about a centimeter wide which is covered in stiff spines.[5] Varieties Ribes californicum var. californicum - mostly Coast Ranges from Ventura County to Mendocino County, with additional populations in Orange County Ribes californicum var. hesperium - primarily San Gabriel Mountains in Southern California (link added by Mary Ann Machi)