Botanical name Ripogonum discolor
A common name Prickly Supplejack
Seedling
Not yet
Young plant
Not yet
Juvenile
Reasonably mature
Sassafras
This is why Ripogonum discolor gets the common name Prickly Supplejack, and one of the reasons why I wear leather gloves, gum boots, a wire brimmed hat and microfibre clothing. Most the images I've seen of Prickly Supplejack seem to miss the best weaponry, only showing the spines on the leaf bearing vines which are far less frequent and more innocuous. Three of those shoots can be seen coming off these 2 older vines. As the plant ages the older vines become less nasty. While you can hold these vines in your hand with very low likely hood of drawing blood it is not a good idea to brush past them with bare flesh. Leeches should have to work for their food.
Some maturing fruit. The 2 dead horizontal shoots behind the prickly vertical shoot are probably from a Rubus rosifolius, a more common inhabitant of pathway edges, their spines are not quite so nasty though they will draw blood and they can be found all over the vine, stems and leaves, just like their introduced Blackberry relatives, only the locals are better. Three live leaves, part of the compound leaf from the Rubus are visible at the bottom of the photo.