M. Thulin (2006) Carissa. Flora of Somalia 3: 130-131
Plants shrubs, usually 1-1.5 m tall but sometimes taller, much branched; branchlets usually pubescent when young, rarely glabrous; spines usually simple, rarely forked, 0.4-7 cm long. Leaves: blades somewhat leathery, ovate to elliptic or subcircular, 1.7-6.8 cm long. 1-4.6 cm wide, both surfcces glabrous to pubescent, lower surfaces paler than upper, tips acute to obtuse. Inflorescences in shortly peduncaulate cymes, with few to many flowers, sweetly scented. Calyces 2-4 mm long, lobes lanceolate-subulate; corollas white, tinged with red outside, tubes 9.5-20 mm long, glabrous or sparsely pubescent outside; lobes lanceolate, overlapping to the right in bud; stamens inserted nea the top of the corollas tubes; anthers 1.5-2 mm long. Berriesellipsoid. 6-11(-25) mm long, green turning red to blue-black, edible, with 2-4 seeds.
Carissa spinarum grows in evergreen to semi-evergreen bushland and Juniperus forest, at 1380-1740 m in region N1 of the Flora of Somaliaand at about 30 m in region S3. It also grwos in Ethiopia, eritrea, Djibouti, other parts of tropical Africa, Madagascar, and southern Arabia to India and Thailand.
The collections from S3 in Somalia have glabrous, rounded leaves whereas those from N1 in Somaliland, have pubescent, more elongate leaves. This, and their difference in elevational range suggests investigation of variation in the species as a whole is merited.
Note: GBIF records include introduced and cultivated plants. Consequently, the distribution shown often differs from statements about a taxon's native distribution.