- Opuntia fragilis
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Opuntia fragilis 
Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Core eudicots Order: Caryophyllales Family: Cactaceae Genus: Opuntia Species: O. fragilis Binomial name Opuntia fragilis
(Nutt.) Haw.Synonyms Cactus fragilis
Opuntia brachyarthraOpuntia fragilis, known by the common names brittle prickly pear and little prickly pear, is a prickly pear cactus native to much of North America. It occurs in several Canadian provinces. It is known from farther north than any other cactus, occurring at as close as 8°south of the Arctic Circle, (58°N latitude) in Alberta.[1] There is an isolated and possibly genetically unique population in Eastern Ontario known as the "Kaladar Cactus".[2]
Contents
Description
Brittle Prickly Pear is a small decumbent cactus that grows to a maximum height of 10 centimeters (4 in).[3] Both the common and scientific names refer to the easily detached stem segments. This is known to be a means of plant dispersal.[3]
Opuntia fragilis is a small, prostrate plant, rarely more than 4 inches high: joints tumid, fragile, easily detached, oval, elliptical, or subglobose, 1-2 in. long and nearly as thick as broad, bright green: areoles ¼-½ in. apart, with whitish wool and a few white to yellow bristles, which are much longer and more abundant on older joints; spines 1-4, occasionally a few small additional ones, weak, dark brown, the upper one usually longer and stronger than the others, rarely an inch in length: flowers greenish yellow, 1-1¼ inches wide: fruit ovate to subglobose. with few spines or bristles, mostly sterile, an inch or less long; seeds few and large. Rocky Mountain region from Canada to New Mexico. [4]
Subspecies and varieties
- Var. brachyarthra, Coult. A plant with more swollen joints, more numerous and stronger spines, smaller flowers and more spiny fruit Colorado, New Mexico.
- Var. caespitosa, Hort. Joints bright green, smaller and more crowded than in the type: flowers bright yellow. Colorado.
- Var. tuberiformis, Hort. Joints olive-green, bulbous-looking. Colorado.
References
- ^ US Forest Service
- ^ http://www3.sympatico.ca/lycacti/kaladar.html
- ^ a b 32. Opuntia fragilis (Nuttall) Haworth, Flora of North America
- ^ Haw.
External links
Categories:- Opuntia
- Plants described in 1819
- Cacti of the United States
- Flora of Canada
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