Echinocereus arizonicus

Echinocereus arizonicus [3] is a species of cactus native to the Chihuahuan Desert region of Chihuahua, southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona, as well as in the Superstition and Mescal Mountains of Central Arizona at elevations between 1400 to 1900 meters.[4]

Echinocereus arizonicus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Genus: Echinocereus
Species:
E. arizonicus
Binomial name
Echinocereus arizonicus
Synonyms[2]
  • Echinocereus coccineus var. arizonicus (Rose ex Orcutt) D. J. Ferguson
  • Echinocereus triglochidiatus var. arizonicus (Rose ex Orcutt) L. D. Benson
  • Echinocereus arizonicus subsp. nigrihorridispinus W. Blum & Rutow

Description

Plants grow in small clumps. Stems are cylindric with 8–13 ribs, measuring 10–40 × 5–10 cm. Areoles are spaced 10–15 mm apart. Spines vary, being straight or contorted. Each areole has 1–8 central spines, 15–50 mm long, and 7–14 radial spines, 5–25 mm long, initially yellowish to brownish but turning gray. Echinocereus arizonicus has deep red to bright orange-red flowers, sometimes with a lighter yellowish-green center.[2][5], 5.5–7 × 3.5–5 cm, with a flower tube of 25–35 mm that has short spines and 2 mm hairs. Fruits are green with a brownish tinge, 20–30 mm, and have white pulp. The chromosome count is 2n = 22.[6]

Taxonomy

An endangered variable of the species "Echinocereus triglochidiatus arizonicus" is found exclusively in sections of the Superstition, Mescal, and Pinal Mountains. Genetic studies have indicated that this variable of the species does not occur outside these mountain ranges.[7]


Common names include "Arizona claret-cup cactus" and "Arizona hedgehog cactus."[2]

References
  1. Baker, M. (2017) [amended version of 2013 assessment]. "Echinocereus arizonicus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T152305A121468353. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T152305A121468353.en. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  2. "Echinocereus arizonicus in Flora of North America @ efloras.org". www.efloras.org. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  3. Orcutt, C.R. Cactography. 1926 (1): 3. 1926.
  4. Center for Plant Conservation, National Collection of Imperiled Plants, Echinocereus triglochidiatus var. arizonicus.
  5. "ASDM Sonoran Desert Digital Library". Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Digital Library. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  6. "Echinocereus arizonicus". beta.floranorthamerica.org. 2020-11-05. Retrieved 2024-06-23.
  7. "All Arizona Species; Arizona Hedgehog Cactus Var. Echinocereus triglochidiatus arizonicus" (PDF). www.fws.gov. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
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