Rhamnus lycioides

Rhamnus lycioides, the black hawthorn, European buckthorn, or Mediterranean buckthorn, is a shrub up to about 1 metre tall in the buckthorn family, Rhamnaceae. It is found in the Mediterranean region, in southern Europe and northern Africa. Its scientific name lycioides refers to its resemblance to the botanical genus Lycium. Rhamnus lycioides is a slow growth shrub adapted to dry Mediterranean climate. It is a deciduous or evergreen shrub of 1.5–3 meters high with a tangled, thorny, and many-branched form. The bark is grayish, and the young stems are topped with a thorn.