''Pediocactus bradyi'' subsp. ''winkleri'', commonly known as Winkler's cactus or Winkler's pincushion cactus, is a small

cactus 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 ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the state of

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

in the United States. It is known only from Emery and Wayne Counties.

Description

''Pediocactus bradyi'' subsp. ''winkleri'' is a round cactus has mostly unbranched subglobose to obovoid stems, standing between 2.5 and 6.5 cm in height and reaching up to 5 cm in diameter. 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, which are woolly and elliptic to circular, contain clusters of 8 to 14 small radial spines that spread downward, measuring 1.5-4 mm. These spines are white or whitish to tan, with no erect central spines. The plant blooms in early spring. The flowers of Pediocactus bradyi subsp. winkleri are funnel-shaped, displaying a peach-to-pink color and measuring 1.8 to 2.5 cm in length and 1.8 to 3.8 cm in diameter.The fruit is green, drying to a reddish-brown, barrel-shaped structure, with dimensions of 0.7-1.0 cm in height and 0.8-1.1 cm in width.

Distribution

''Pediocactus bradyi'' subsp. ''winkleri'' is a species found in small, scattered populations within a confined and isolated region in central

, extending from near Notom in central Wayne County to Fremont Junction in southwestern

Emery County Emery County is a county in east-central Utah, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 10,976. Its county seat is Castle Dale, and the largest city is Huntington. History Prehistory Occupation of the San Rafael ...

, and near Ferron in western Emery County. It thrives at elevations ranging from 1400 to 2100 meters. Typically growing in sandy hilltops and slopes with alkaline silty loam or clay loam soils, often enriched with

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. ...

, this desert-dwelling plant displays distinct characteristics. The cactus is cold-hardy

Taxonomy

This cactus was first documented in the early 1960s by Mrs. Agnes Winkler who was traveling with her then teenage son, Jim Winkler, in Utah's

San Rafael Swell The San Rafael Swell is a large geologic feature located in south-central Utah, United States about west of Green River. The San Rafael Swell, measuring approximately , consists of a giant dome-shaped anticline of sandstone, shale, and limeston ...

. Dr. Lyman Benson had earlier named a species that was then thought to be the same or that was similar (''

Pediocactus bradyi ''Pediocactus bradyi'' is a very rare species of cactus known by the common names Brady's pincushion cactus, Brady's hedgehog cactus, and Marble Canyon cactus. It is endemic to Arizona in the USA, where it is restricted to Marble Canyon in Coconi ...

'', discovered in Arizona in 1958 and which only occurs there). It was not until 1979 that botanist Ken Heil recognized ''P. winkleri'' as a new species. The Winklers had noticed the cactus during a vacation to Capitol Reef. Upon returning home to New Mexico, Mrs. Winkler sent a letter to local botanist Ken Heil along with a picture and habitat description. Heil had started to undertake botanical work in southern Utah and located the population based on Mrs. Winkler's description. Since the intention of the author was to honor Mrs. Agnes Winkler (see the "New in 2012" section and specifically the first 2/17/12 entry on the What's New page of the Utah Rare Plant Guide ''Utah Rare Plant Guide''.
Utah Native Plant Society. 2003-2016. Utah rare plant guide. Frates AJ, editor/coordinator. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah Native Plant Society), its specific epithet should have been "winklerae." Because that intent was not specifically outlined in the original description, changing the name to "winklerae" may require a formal committee request rather than relying on Article 60.11 of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature which would allow for correction if the intent was clear. In 1999 David Hunt listed the cactus as a provisionally accepted taxon under the name of ''Pediocactus bradyi'' subsp. ''winkleri'' in the Second Edition of the

CITES CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...

Cactaceae Checklist. DNA analyses conducted to date however have shown that neither ''Pediocactus despainii'' nor this taxon are related to ''Pediocactus bradyi'' and that both ''P. despainii'' and ''P. winkleri'' are likely more closely related instead to ''P. simpsonii.'' ''Pediocactus winkleri''.
Flora of North America. ''Pediocactus bradyi'' subsp. ''winkleri'' was listed as a

threatened species Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...

under the

Endangered Species Act The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA or "The Act"; 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) is the primary law in the United States for protecting imperiled species. Designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of ec ...

on August 20, 1998. As with many other cactus species, its most serious threat relates to poaching by plant collectors (but is also threatened by off-road vehicle use). Cacti such as ''P. bradyi'' subsp. ''winkleri'' should only be grown from legitimately obtained seed or plants legally grown from seed and should never be taken from the wild.

References

External links

Desert Tropicals

USDA PLANTS Profile

State of Utah Natural Resources

Utah Native Plant Society
{{Taxonbar, from=Q14626502 Cacti of the United States Flora of Utah Endemic flora of the United States bradyi subsp. winkleri