Opuntia microdasys

Opuntia microdasys
Opuntia microdasys
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Core eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Genus: Opuntia
Species: O. microdasys
Binomial name
Opuntia microdasys
(Lehm.) Pfeiff.

Opuntia microdasys (Bunny Ears Cactus, Bunny Cactus or Polka-dot Cactus) is a species of cactus native and endemic to central and northern Mexico.

Description

Opuntia microdasys forms a dense shrub 40–60 cm tall, occasionally more, composed of pad-like stems 6–15 cm long and 4–12 cm broad.

Opuntia microdasys has no spines, but instead has numerous white or yellow glochids 2–3 mm long in dense clusters; these detach very easily on being touched, and can cause considerable skin irritation, so the plants must be treated with caution. Despite this, it is a very popular cactus in cultivation.

Related species

The very closely related Opuntia rufida differs in having reddish-brown glochids; it occurs further north in northern Mexico, and into western Texas. Some botanists treat the two as a single species.