Opuntia engelmannii
{{Short description|Species of cactus}}
{{See also|Opuntia phaeacantha}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Opuntia engelmannii-Figuier de barbarie-20150609.jpg
|genus = Opuntia
|species = engelmannii
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
|authority = Salm-Dyck ex Engelmann
|synonyms = Opuntia engelmanni (a common lapsus)
|}}
Opuntia engelmannii is a prickly pear common across the south-central and Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It goes by a variety of common names, including desert prickly pear, discus prickly pear, Engelmann's prickly pear{{GRIN | access-date=2013-03-23}} in the US, and nopal, abrojo, joconostle, and vela de coyote in Mexico.
The nomenclatural history of this species is somewhat complicated due to the varieties, as well as its habit of hybridizing with Opuntia phaeacantha. It differs from Opuntia phaeacantha by being green year round instead of turning reddish purple during winter or dry seasons, as well as having yellow flowers with red centers.{{Cite journal|last=Felger|first=R.S|last2=Hawkins|first2=J.A.|last3=Verrier|first3=J.|date=2017-07-18|title=New combinations for Sonoran Desert plants|url=http://www.phytoneuron.net/2017Phytoneuron/48PhytoN-SonoranNames.pdf|journal=Phytoneuron|issue=48|pages=1–6}}
Varieties
- Opuntia engelmannii var. cuija — nopal cuijo; endemic to Mexico, in Guanajuato, Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí.{{GRIN|Opuntia engelmannii var. cuija|435355|access-date=24 December 2017}}
- Opuntia engelmannii var. engelmannii — Engelmann's prickly pear; Mexico, southwestern U.S., California {{GRIN|Opuntia engelmannii var. engelmannii|414087|access-date=24 December 2017}}[http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?2702,2726,0,2735 Jepson Manual treatment for Opuntia engelmannii var. engelmannii]
- Opuntia engelmannii var. flavispina — yellow-spined prickly pear; Arizona, Mexico
- Opuntia engelmannii var. laevis — smooth prickly pear; Arizona
- Opuntia engelmannii var. lindheimeri — Texas prickly pear; endemic to U.S. in Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas.[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=OPENL USDA: var. lindheimeri']
- Opuntia engelmannii var. linguiformis — cow's tongue cactus, cow tongue prickly pear; Texas {{GRIN|Opuntia engelmannii var. linguiformis|435356|access-date=24 December 2017}}
Opuntia engelmannii var. flexospina is most likely a spiny form of Opuntia aciculata.{{Cite web|date=2011-12-23|title=Opuntia aciculata|url=https://www.opuntiads.com/opuntia-aciculata/|accessdate=2021-03-10|website=Opuntia Web}}{{Cite web|title=Opuntia engelmannii var. flexospina (Griffiths) B.D.Parfitt & Pinkava|url=http://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:281631-2|access-date=2021-03-11|website=Plants of the World Online|publisher=Kew Science}}
Balchik Botanical Garden 2017 53.jpg|O. e. var. engelmannii
Opuntia engelmannii flavispina 1zz.jpg|O. e. var. flavispina
Flower Opuntia engelmannii var lindheimeri.jpg|An unusual orange-red form of O. e. var. lindheimeri
Cacti, Porto Botanical gardens..jpg|O. e. var. linguiformis
Opuntia17 filtered.jpg|O. e. var. laevis (right)
Distribution
The Opuntia engelmannii range extends from California to Louisiana in the United States, and from Sonora (state) and Chihuahua (state), to the Tamaulipan matorral in north and central Tamaulipas.
In the Sonoran Desert, terminal pads face predominantly east-west, so as to maximize the absorption of solar radiation during summer rains. Although found occasionally in the Mojave Desert, it tends to be replaced by Opuntia basilaris, which does not need the summer rain.
Naturalised in southern and eastern Africa, including Loisaba in Kenya.
Description
Opuntia engelmannii is generally shrubby, with dense clumps up to {{convert|3.5|m|ft}} high, usually with no apparent trunk. The pads are green (rarely blue-green), obovate to round, about 15–30 cm long and 12–20 cm wide.{{Cite web|url=http://opuntiads.com/records/opuntia-engelmannii-desc.pdf|title=Opuntia engelmannii, original description|date=2012-01-01|access-date=2016-09-16}}
The glochids are yellow initially, then brown with age. Spines are extremely variable, with anywhere from 1-8 per areole, and often absent from lower areoles; they are yellow to white, slightly flattened, and 1–6 cm long.
The flowers are yellow, occasionally reddish, 5–8 cm in diameter and about as long. Flowering is in April and May, with each bloom lasting only one day, opening at about 08:00 A.M. and closing 8 hours later. Pollinators include solitary bees, such as the Antophoridae, and sap beetles.
The purple fleshy fruits are 3–7 cm long.{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}}
Uses
The fruits were a reliable summer food for Native American tribes.[http://herb.umd.umich.edu/herb/search.pl?searchstring=Opuntia%20engelmannii&searchlimit=100 U. of Michigan: Native American Ethnobotany Database] The Tohono O'odham of the Sonoran Desert in particular classified the fruits by color, time of ripening, and how well they kept in storage.
Opuntia engelmannii is cultivated as an ornamental plant, for use in drought tolerant gardens, container plantings, and natural landscaping projects.[http://ag.arizona.edu/pima/gardening/aridplants/Opuntia_engelmannii.html Master Gardeners of the University of Arizona Pima County Cooperative Extension — Opuntia engelmannii]
References
{{Reflist|refs=
{{cite web | title=Factsheet - Opuntia engelmannii (Prickly Pear Cactus) | website=Lucid Key Server | url=http://keys.lucidcentral.org/keys/v3/eafrinet/weeds/key/weeds/Media/Html/Opuntia_engelmannii_(Prickly_Pear_Cactus).htm | access-date=2021-03-25}}
}}
- Edward F. Anderson, The Cactus Family (Timber Press, 2001), pp. 497–498
- Raymond M. Turner, Janice E. Bowers, and Tony L. Burgess, Sonoran Desert Plants: an Ecological Atlas (Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 1995) pp. 291–293
External links
{{Commons category|Opuntia engelmannii}}
- [http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=OPENL USDA Plants Profile for Opuntia engelmannii var. lindheimeri (Texas pricklypear)]
- [http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?query_src=photos_index&where-taxon=Opuntia+engelmannii Opuntia engelmannii — U.C. Photo gallery]
- [http://opuntiads.com/records/opuntia-engelmannii-herb4.jpg Herbarium specimen]
- [https://www.opuntiads.com/opuntia-engelmannii/ Opuntia engelmannii photo gallery at Opuntia Web]
{{Taxonbar|from=Q142016}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Cacti of the United States
Category:North American desert flora
Category:Flora of the California desert regions
Category:Flora of the Chihuahuan Desert
Category:Flora of the Sonoran Deserts
Category:Flora of Northwestern Mexico
Category:Flora of Northeastern Mexico
Category:Flora of Central Mexico
Category:Flora of the Southwestern United States