Acrothmanus colensoi, syn Cyathodes colensoi or prickly mingimingi is endemic to the North, South and Stewart Islands, and is found from the Kaimanawa Mountains, Ruahine and Tararua Ranges southwards where it is widespread on the drier mountains in eastern Nelson, Marlborough and Canterbury. It is rather local in Otago and rare in northern Southland. It grows on well-drained sites, including rocky outcrops in montane shrubland, mixed tussock-scrub or snow tussock grassland from 600-1600m asl. It is a low sprawling, bushy shrub often forming patches up to 50cm high and 2m across. It has upright branches with small rigid leaves that can be a dull greenish-grey colour sometime with a reddish or purplish brown hue, and are paler underneath with prominent white veins and down-turned margins. They have small white flower from November, that although have both male and female parts present there are different sizes in them between plants so they function as either male or female. Only the females bear thin fleshed fruits from February that when ripe can range from white through pink and red to deep crimson.