Opuntia

Opuntia is a genus in the cactus faimily, Cactaceae. Taxonomy When Carl Linnaeus published Species Plantarum in 1753 – the stairtin pynt for modren botanical nomenclatur – he placed aw the species o cactus kent tae him in ane genus, Cactus. In 1754, the Scots botanist Philip Miller dividit cacti intae several genera, includin Opuntia. He distinguished the genus lairgely on the form o its flouers an fruits. Selectit species Opuntia hybridizes readily atween species. This can mak clessification difficult. An aa, nae aw species leetit here mey actually alang in this genus. Opuntia aciculata – Chenille prickly peir , auld man's whiskers, cowboy’s reid whiskers Opuntia anacantha Opuntia arenaria Dune pricklypear; Diploid (2n=22) Opuntia articulata Opuntia atrispina Opuntia auberi Opuntia aurantiaca Opuntia aurea Hexaploid (2n=66) Opuntia basilaris – Beavertail cactus; Diploid (2n=22) Opuntia boldinghii Opuntia chaffeyi Opuntia chlorotica – pancake prickly peir; native tae southwest USA an the Sonoran an Mojave deserts; Diploid (2n=22) Opuntia clavata Opuntia cochenillifera Opuntia comonduensis Opuntia curvospina Tetraploid (2n=44) Opuntia decumana Opuntia decumbens – nopal de culebra Opuntia dejecta Opuntia diploursina - Found aroond Grand Canyon an Lake Mead Naitional Recreation Area; Diploid (2n=22) Opuntia echinocarpa - see Cylindropuntia echinocarpa Opuntia echios Opuntia echios var. gigantea – Galápagos prickly peir, Galápagos Islands Opuntia elata Opuntia elatior Mill. – syn. O. bergeriana Opuntia engelmannii – Engelmann's prickly peir, cow's-tongue prickly peir, desert prickly peir, discus prickly peir, Texas prickly peir, calico cactus; Hexaploid (2n=66) Opuntia erinacea Tetraploid (2n=44) Opuntia exaltata Opuntia excelsa Opuntia ficus-barbarica Opuntia ficus-indica – Indian fig opuntia Opuntia fragilis – little prickly peir, brittle cactus, foond in the Great Plains an as far wast as British Columbia Opuntia galapageia Opuntia gosseliniana – violet prickly peir Opuntia gosseliniana var. santa-rita – Santa Rita prickly peir Opuntia helleri Opuntia hickenii Opuntia humifusa – eastren prickly peir (whiles included in O. compressa); Tetraploid (2n=44) Opuntia hyptiacantha Opuntia inamoema K. Schum. – quipá Opuntia insularis Opuntia invicta syn. Corynopuntia invicta, Grusonia invicta Opuntia jamaicensis Opuntia laevis Opuntia lasiacantha Opuntia leucotricha – arborescent prickly peir, Aaron's beard cactus, semaphore cactus, Duraznillo blanco, nopal blanco Opuntia lindheimeri – cowtongue prickly peir Opuntia littoralis – coastal prickly peir, sprawlin prickly peir Opuntia longispina Opuntia macrocentra – black-spine prickly peir, purpie prickly peir, foond in southwest USA an northren Mexico Opuntia macrorhiza – Plains prickly peir, foond throughout the Great Plains except for the northernmost areas (nae foond in North Dakota), an extendin sporadically eastward as far as Kentucky, syn. O. leptocarpa MacKensen, O. tenuispina Engelm., O. tortispina Engelm. & Bigelow; Tetraploid (2n=44) Opuntia matudae – xoconostle (syn. Opuntia joconostle) Opuntia maldonandensis Opuntia maxima Opuntia megacantha Opuntia megarrhiza Opuntia microdasys – bunny lugs cactus, polka-dot cactus Opuntia monacantha – common prickly peir Opuntia nichollii - Distributed throughout much o the Colorado Plateau, frae Grand Canyon north tae Price, Utah an east tae the Colorado border; Hexaploid (2n=66) Opuntia oricola Opuntia ovata Opuntia paraguayensis Opuntia phaeacantha – tulip prickly peir, includes plateau prickly peir, brown-spined prickly peir, Mojave prickly peir, Kingman prickly peir; Hexaploid (2n=66) Opuntia picardoi Opuntia pinkavae – Pinkava's prickly peir; Octoploid (2n=88) Opuntia polyacantha – Panhandle prickly peir, foond in the Great Plains, Great Basin, Mojave Desert, Colorado Plateau, an the Rocky Mountains, syn. O. rhodantha K.Schum.; Tetraploid (2n=44) Opuntia polyacantha var. arenaria (syn. O. erinacea) Opuntia pubescens (syn. O. pascoensis Britton & Rose) Opuntia pusilla – creeping cactus, syn. O. drummondii Graham Opuntia quitensis – Red Buttons opuntia (syn. O. macbridei, O. johnsonii, Platyopuntia quitensis) Opuntia rastrera Opuntia repens Opuntia robusta Opuntia rufida (sometimes included in O. microdasys) Opuntia schumannii Opuntia soehrensii Opuntia stenopetala (syn. O. riviereana Backeb.) Opuntia streptacantha Opuntia stricta – erect prickly peir, spineless prickly peir Opuntia subulata – foond in Sooth Americae Opuntia sulphurea Opuntia taylori Opuntia tehuantepecana – nopal de caballo Opuntia tomentosa – woollyjoint prickly peir Opuntia triacantha Opuntia trichophora Diploid (2n=22) Opuntia tuna Opuntia velutina Opuntia violacea Umwhile in Opuntia Austrocylindropuntia Brasiliopuntia Corynopuntia Cylindropuntia Disocactus phyllanthoides (as Opuntia speciosa) Micropuntia Miqueliopuntia References