[4][5][6] The amphitropical distribution is believed to have arisen recently (in the past 1 million years), probably by seeds attached to the feathers of migratory birds.

[9] The larvae of a prodoxid moth restricted to California, Greya reticulata, feed on fruits of O. berteroi.

The plentiful green leaves have blades up to 20 centimeters long which are divided into three leaflets (trifoliate), which are toothed or lobed.

These included the Selknam people in what is now Chile[citation needed], and tribes of the Great Plains, such as the Cheyenne and Blackfoot.

However some disjunct populations in eastern North America are isolated, and the typical habitat is fragmented and prone to destruction.