''Geohintonia mexicana'' (discovered in 1992) 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 ...
of
cacti
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 Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...
, the only species in the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
''Geohintonia''. This genus is named after its discoverer George S. Hinton. As its
specific epithet
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
suggests, the plant is found in
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
(
Nuevo León
Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. With a ...
), where it grows on
gypsum
Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, blackboard or sidewalk chalk, and drywall. ...
hills near
Galeana.
[, p. 342]
Description
It is a solitary, globose plant, slowly becoming columnar, up to 10 cm tall and 10 cm in diameter. grayish bluish green. It has between 18 to 20 very prominent ribs, with 3 curved spines about 3 to 12 mm long on each areola. The hot pink, funnel-shaped flowers emerge at the apex and open after dark.
The species has one form: ''Geohintonia mexicana'' f. ''cristata''.
File:Geohintonia mexicana 02.jpg, Flower
File:Geohintonia mexicana fma cristata.jpg, ''Geohintonia mexicana'' f. ''cristata''
References
External links
*
*
Cacti of Mexico
Endemic flora of Mexico
Flora of Nuevo León
Monotypic Cactaceae genera
Near threatened biota of Mexico
Cactoideae
{{Cactus-stub