Pelecyphora vivipara | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Caryophyllales |
Family: | Cactaceae |
Subfamily: | Cactoideae |
Genus: | Pelecyphora |
Species: | P. vivipara |
Binomial name | |
Pelecyphora vivipara (Nutt.) D.Aquino & Dan.Sánchez | |
Synonyms [3] | |
List
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Pelecyphora vivipara is a species of cactus known by several common names, including spinystar, viviparous foxtail cactus, pincushion cactus and ball cactus. It is native to North America, where certain varieties can be found from Mexico to Canada. Most of these varieties are limited to the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts. The species epithet "vivipara" is due to the species' viviparous reproductive habit. [4]
Pelecyphora vivipara rarely grows individually and usually forms groups. This is a small round cactus growing to a maximum height of about 15 cm (6 in), often remaining smaller and oblong or spherical. It is densely covered in a mat of star-shaped arrays of straight white spines 1 to 2.5 cm (3⁄8 to 1 in) long. It flowers in yellow, pink, red, or purple blooms 2–5 cm (3⁄4–2 in) across. [5] [6] Their conspicuous warts are up to 12 mm (1⁄2 in) long. The often hair-like spines are translucent and shiny. The three to seven uniformly orange or brown colored central spines are spreading and strong. The approximately 16 radiating marginal spines are white.
The flowers are bright pink to purple. They are up to 6 centimeters long and reach a diameter of 5 centimeters. The green, ellipsoid fruits are up to 2.5 centimeters long and 1.5 centimeters in diameter. They are often covered with scales at their tip. [7]
Varieties include: [8]
The species has a broad range across the western interior of North America, from northern Mexico to the Canadian prairies. [9] Its distribution in the early Holocene era is known to have differed locally from its present range. From pollen core data, a portion of the prehistoric distribution of this species has been mapped; for example in the Late Wisconsin period, Pelecyphora vivipara occurred in the Waterman Mountains (Coconino County) of northern Arizona, (the Waterman Mountains are in SE Arizona), although the species does not occur in this location in the present time. [10]
In the US state of Minnesota, it is listed as a threatened species and is at the most easterly extent of its natural range; it is rare in the state and found in a narrow section of the western part of the state, where it is found growing in crevices and outcroppings of granite. [6] It consists of one population that in the past was recorded by Lycurgus Moyer, who found it in 1898, as "quite abundant", but because of habitat loss due to farming, its numbers have declined. [6] The remaining plants are also threatened by illegal harvesting by cactus fanciers, who plant it in rock gardens and windowsills. [6]
Notably, Pelecyphora vivipara is one of only four cactus species native to Canada, growing in the southern prairies of Alberta, Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba. [11]
The first description as Cactus viviparus by Thomas Nuttall was published in 1813. [12] The specific epithet vivipara is derived from the Latin word viviparus and means 'living birth'. The reference to the species is unclear. Franz Buxbaum placed the species in the genus Escobaria in 1951. [13] David Aquino & Daniel Sánchez moved the species to Pelecyphora based on phylogenetic studies in 2022. [14] Further nomenclature synonyms are Mammillaria vivipara (Nutt.) Haw. (1819), Echinocactus viviparus (Nutt.) Poselg. (1853), Mammillaria radiosa f. vivipara (Nutt.) Schelle (1907, incorrect name ICBN article 11.4) and Coryphantha vivipara (Nutt.) Britton & Rose (1913).
In botanical nomenclature, variety is a taxonomic rank below that of species and subspecies, but above that of form. As such, it gets a three-part infraspecific name. It is sometimes recommended that the subspecies rank should be used to recognize geographic distinctiveness, whereas the variety rank is appropriate if the taxon is seen throughout the geographic range of the species.
Mammillaria is one of the largest genera in the cactus family (Cactaceae), with currently 200 known species and varieties recognized. Most of the mammillaria are native to Mexico, but some come from the southwest United States, the Caribbean, Colombia, Venezuela, Guatemala and Honduras. The common name "pincushion cactus" refers to this and the closely related genus Escobaria.
Coryphantha, or beehive cactus, is a genus of small to middle-sized, globose or columnar cacti. The genus is native to arid parts of Central America, Mexico, through Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas and north into southwestern, central, and southeastern Montana. With its two subgenera, 57 species and 20 subspecies, it is one of the largest genera of cactus.
Pelecyphora, pincushion cactus or foxtail cactus is a genus of cacti, comprising 20 species. They originate from Mexico and the United States.
Pelecyphora missouriensis, the Missouri foxtail cactus and formerly Coryphantha missouriensis, is a species of low-growing North American cacti.
Ferocactus cylindraceus is a species of barrel cactus which is known by several common names, including California barrel cactus, Desert barrel cactus, compass barrel cactus, and miner's compass. It was first described by George Engelmann in 1853.
Pelecyphora minima is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Nellie cory cactus, Nellie's pincushion cactus, birdfoot cactus, and others. It is a very popular species among cactus collectors. This is one reason why it is a highly endangered species in the wild today. This cactus is found only in Brewster County, Texas, in the United States, where there are three populations remaining near Marathon. The cactus is limited to one outcrop in the Marathon Uplift, where it grows in rocky novaculite soils. It was added to the endangered species list in 1979.
Pelecyphora sneedii is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Sneed's pincushion cactus and carpet foxtail cactus. It is endemic to the Chihuahuan Desert of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. It is a small, variable cactus with a lengthy taxonomic history, and is often subdivided into a number of subspecies or varieties. It is usually found on steep, rocky habitats, primarily of limestone geology, in desert scrub or coniferous forest. A species of conservation concern, P. sneedii faces threats from poaching, urban encroachment, and wildfires.
Pelecyphora macromeris, the nipple beehive cactus, is a species of cactus in the United States and Mexico. In the Chihuhuan Desert, it is common and has a wide range.
Pelecyphora tuberculosa, the corncob cactus, is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to the south-central United States, and northern Mexico.
Pelecyphora alversonii commonly known as cushion foxtail cactus or cushion fox-tail cactus, is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to the southwestern United States.
Pelecyphora cubensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to Cuba.
Pelecyphora laredoi is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to Mexico.
Pelecyphora hesteri is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to Texas, United States.
Pelecyphora dasyacantha is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to the Mexico.
Pelecyphora emskoetteriana is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to the Mexico and southern United States.
Pelecyphora zilziana is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to Mexico.
Pelecyphora lloydii is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to Mexico.
Pelecyphora duncanii is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae, native to the southern United States.
Pelecyphora robbinsiorum known by the common names Cochise pincushion cactus and Cochise foxtail cactus is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae.