This midwestern species is generally uncommon to rare in Ky., where it occurs only in more hilly sections of the Bluegrass, Knobs and (outer) Shawnee Hills. It is largely restricted to thin woods near outer edges of calcareous ravines and riparian zones; in some localities, it is associated with Arundinaria gigantea (e.g. in HART and NICH). It tends to occur on seasonally drier or more open sites than cynosbati, and it may increase in woodland subject to browsing, especially at edges (see also, FNA 8). In Mo. "it is the most common species of gooseberry... and dense populations are an indication that a site has a history of graing by cattle" (Y). In a Wisc. study, a dense population was not reduced by two summers with occasional intense cattle browsing (despite >90% reduction in Rubus); but there was >90% reduction by fires in late Apr (Harrington & Kathol 2009). Without flowers or fruits, missouriense is hard to distinguish from cynosbati, and a few identifications remain tentative; hybrids are possible but not documented (FNA 8). Differences from cynosbati are clear based on its fruits (red to purple and smooth versus green to pale red and hispid). Also, floral dimensions are generally larger in sepals (5-7 mm long versus 1.5-4 mm), petals (2-3.5 mm long versus 1-2.5 mm), styles (10-14 mm versus 4.5-7 mm), stamens (ca. 15 mm long versus 2-3 mm), which are much more exserted (3-5 x petals versus 1-1.5 x), and anthers (1-2 mm long versus 0.4-0.6 mm). Although missouriense is generally considered synoecious, there is a report of dioecy (missouri botanical garden.org). Based on several sources (F, Cr, FNA 8, Y, W), leaves of missouriense tend to be smaller (ca. 1.5-3.5 cm across versus 2-5 cm) and less hairy (the upper surface glabrescent versus pilose and sometimes stipitate-glandular). Also, its spines tend to be longer (mostly 7-17 mm versus 5-10 mm); and internodal spines are often absent, except on vigorous sprouts (versus often present).