''Ferocactus gracilis'', the fire barrel cactus, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

Ferocactus ''Ferocactus'' is a genus of large barrel-shaped cacti, mostly with large spines and small flowers. There are about 30 species included in the genus. They are found in the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. Description The y ...

from Northwestern Mexico. This cactus gets its common name from the striking red coloration of its defensive spines and flowers.

Description

''Ferocactus gracilis'' is a solitary cactus that grows up to 3 meters tall, with cylindrical or spherical stems reaching heights of up to and diameters of . It has deep green stems with 16 to 24 slightly tuberculated ribs. The

areole In botany, areoles are small light- to dark-colored bumps on cacti out of which grow clusters of spines. Areoles are important diagnostic features of cacti, and identify them as a family distinct from other succulent plants. Gordon Rowley - W ...

s are light gray bearing 7 to 13 central spines that are red, flattened, and up to long, with a slightly curved to hook-shaped yellow tip. Additionally, there are eight to twelve white radial spines, occasionally twisted and around long. The plant blooms in spring to early summer, producing funnel-shaped flowers with a purple-red midvein and red,yellow to white margins, reaching lengths of up to and diameters of . The elongated yellow fruits are about long and do not open at a basal pore. The seeds are round, black, shiny, and measure 1.7- long and 1.1- wide.

Subspecies

There are four accepted subspecies:

Distribution

''Ferocactus gracili''s is native to southern Sierra San Pedro Martir, south to Punta Prieta, and northern

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

, Mexico, growing at elevations of 10 to 30 meters. It thrives in rocky hillsides, outwash fans, silt flats, and gravelly plains, often alongside other desert plants like ''

Mammillaria dioica ''Mammillaria dioica'', also called the strawberry cactus, California fishhook cactus, strawberry pincushion or fishhook cactus, is a cactus species of the genus ''Mammillaria''. Its common name in Spanish is ''biznaga llavina''. Distribution Th ...

'', '' Cochemiea hutchisoniana'', '' Echinocereus engelmannii'', ''

Pachycereus pringlei ''Pachycereus'' is a genus of 9–12 species of large cacti native to Mexico and just into southern Arizona, United States. They form large shrubs or small trees up to 15 m tall, with stout stems up to 1 m in diameter. ''Pachycereus'' comes fr ...

'', ''

Stenocereus thurberi ''Stenocereus thurberi'', the organ pipe cactus, is a species of cactus native to Mexico and the United States. The species is found in rocky desert. Two subspecies are recognized based on their distribution and height. The Organ Pipe Cactus Nati ...

'', '' Fouquieria burragei'', '' Cylindropuntia cholla'', '' Idria columnaris'', ''

Lophocereus schottii ''Lophocereus schottii'', the senita cactus, is a species of cactus from southern Arizona and north-western Mexico, particularly Baja California and Sonora. Synonyms include ''Pilocereus schottii'' and ''Pachycereus schottii''., pp. 536–537 Th ...

'', and ''

Stenocereus gummosus ''Stenocereus gummosus'' is a flowering plant in the family Cactaceae A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophy ...

''.

Taxonomy

This species was first described in 1933 by Howard Elliott Gates who named it after its slender growth habit.

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q150203 gracilis Flora of Mexico Plants described in 1933