Opuntia fragilis
{{Short description|Species of cactus}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Opuntia fragilis 1.jpg
|genus = Opuntia
|species = fragilis
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
|status2 = {{TNCStatus}}
|status2_system = TNC
|synonyms = Cactus fragilis
Opuntia brachyarthra
}}
Opuntia fragilis, known by the common names brittle pricklypear and little prickly pear, is a prickly pear cactus native to much of western North America.
Description
Opuntia fragilis is a small, prostrate plant, up to {{convert|8|in|cm|order=flip}} tall.{{Cite book |last1=Turner |first1=Mark |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VLbAAwAAQBAJ |title=Trees & Shrubs of the Pacific Northwest |last2=Kuhlmann |first2=Ellen |date=2014 |publisher=Timber Press |isbn=978-1-60469-263-1 |edition=1st |location=Portland, OR |pages=422}} The joints are tumid, fragile, easily detached, oval, elliptical, or subglobose, {{convert|1|-|2|in|cm|0|abbr=on|order=flip}} long and nearly as thick as broad, bright green. The areoles are {{convert|1/4|-|1/2|in|cm|1|abbr=on|order=flip}} apart, with whitish wool and a few white to yellow bristles, which are much longer and more abundant on older joints. There are 2–7 spines up to {{Convert|1-6.5|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} long and 1–3 very short ones; they are dark brown and weak, the upper spine usually longer and stronger than the others.
The flowers are greenish yellow, {{convert|1|-|1+1/4|in|cm|1|abbr=on|order=flip}} wide. The fruit is ovate to subglobose with few spines or bristles, mostly sterile, up to {{convert|1|in|cm|abbr=on|order=flip}} long, with many seeds.
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.
- {{visible anchor|var. fragilis|text=Var. fragilis}}{{cite web | title=Opuntia fragilis | website=Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center The University of Texas at Austin | date=2016-03-04 | url=http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=opfr | access-date=2022-03-25}}{{cite web | title=Opuntia fragilis | website=US Forest Service | url=http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/cactus/opufra/all.html | access-date=2022-03-25}}
- Var. tuberiformis, Hort. Joints olive-green, bulbous-looking. Colorado.
Distribution and habitat
It is native to much of western North America as well as some midwestern states such as Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan. It also occurs in several Canadian provinces. It is known from farther north than any other cactus,Hogan, C. Michael (2011). [http://www.eoearth.org/article/Cactus?topic=49480 Cactus. Topic ed. Arthur Dawson. Ed.-in-chief Cutler J.Cleveland. Encyclopedia of Earth. National Council for Science and the Environment. Washington DC] occurring at as far as 56°N latitude in British Columbia.{{cite journal |last1=Gorelick |first1=Root |date=2015 |title=Northern Range Limit of Opuntia fragilis and the Cactaceae is 56°N, Not 58°N |url=http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.3120/0024-9637-62.2.115?journalCode=madr |journal=Madroño |volume=62 |issue=2 |pages=115–123 |doi=10.3120/0024-9637-62.2.115 |s2cid=85912474}} There is an isolated and possibly genetically unique population in Eastern Ontario known as the "Kaladar population".{{cite journal |last1=Mottiar |first1=Yaseen |last2=Chafe |first2=Paul D.J. |last3=Ribbens |first3=Eric |date=2015 |title=Imperfect Flowers of Opuntia fragilis in Kaladar, Ontario |url=http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.2985/026.020.0105 |journal=Haseltonia |volume=20 |pages=22–25 |doi=10.2985/026.020.0105 |s2cid=84131774|url-access=subscription }}
It grows on outcrops, dry grassy knolls, and in sandy soil, along with sagebrush and junipers.
Gallery
Opuntia fragilis "Feldberg" (9215688536).jpg
Roadside BrittlePickly-Pear Cactus (Opuntia fragillis) near Savona - (28639189495).jpg
Roadside BrittlePickly-Pear Cactus (Opuntia fragillis) near Savona - (28560479001).jpg
Steingarten Kaktus.jpg|Opuntia fragilis var. denudata
Opuntia fragilis 'Frankfurt' (WikiPlant).jpg|Opuntia fragilis var. denudata
Opuntia fragilis pm.jpg|A hybrid
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikispecies}}
- [http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?2702,2726,2741 Jepson Manual Treatment]
- [http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?query_src=photos_index&where-taxon=Opuntia+fragilis Opuntia fragilis Photo gallery]
- [https://www.opuntiads.com/opuntia-fragilis/ Opuntia fragilis photo gallery at Opuntia Web]
{{Taxonbar|from=Q138387}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Cacti of the United States
Category:Flora of Western Canada
Category:Flora of the Northwestern United States
Category:Flora of the North-Central United States
Category:Flora of the Southwestern United States
Category:Flora of the Great Lakes region (North America)
Category:Flora of the Great Plains (North America)
Category:Flora of the Cascade Range
Category:Flora of the Rocky Mountains
Category:Plants described in 1819