''Thelocactus setispinus'', commonly known as miniature barrel cactus or hedgehog cactus, is a species of

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 ...

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 Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...

Description

''Thelocactus setispinus'' is globe-shaped to short cylindrical cactus about to wide and up to tall. The 12 to 15 radial spines are needle-shaped, bright, brown or white and up to long. The 1 to 3 central spines are longer and stronger, straight and curved like a hook at the tip. The flowers are orange, dark yellow, magenta, or violet with a red center, about long. This cactus blooms in late summer. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

s are red, round or elliptical, a little scaly, about to .

Distribution

This species is widespread in the southern United States in the State of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and the

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

states of

Coahuila Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico. Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...

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 ...

and

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

. This species has spread throughout the world as an ornamental plant. Its natural habitat is

arid A region is arid when it severely lacks available water, to the extent of hindering or preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life. Regions with arid climates tend to lack vegetation and are called xeric or desertic. Most ar ...

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

s, distributed widely but has a scattered population. It usually grows in black or clay soils on coastal lowlands under

mesquite Mesquite is a common name for several plants in the genus ''Prosopis'', which contains over 40 species of small leguminous trees. They are native to dry areas in the Americas. They have extremely long roots to seek water from very far under grou ...

scrubs, at an elevation of about above sea level. Plants are found growing along ''

Astrophytum asterias ''Astrophytum asterias'' is a species of cactus in the genus ''Astrophytum'', and is native to small parts of Texas in the United States and Mexico. Common names include sand dollar cactus, sea urchin cactus, star cactus and star peyote. Descr ...

'', ''

Mammillaria heyderi ''Mammillaria heyderi'' is a species of cactus in the tribe Cacteae. It is endemic to Sonora and Chihuahua in Mexico and New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas in the United States. References External links ''Mammillaria heyderi''at Tropicos Tr ...

'', '' Echinocereus stramineus'', ''

Echinocereus poselgeri ''Echinocereus poselgeri'', also known as the dahlia cactus, is a species of Echinocereus. It is native to Coahuila and southern Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United Sta ...

'' and ''

Echinocactus texensis ''Echinocactus texensis'' (also known as the horse crippler or devil's pincushion) is a cactus in the subfamily Cactoideae. It is endemic to the United States and Mexico. It has one Synonym (taxonomy), synonym. References External links

...

'' File:Thelocactus setispinus flower.jpg, Close-up on a flower of ''Thelocactus setispinus''.

Taxonomy

In 1845 George Engelmann first described the plant as ''Echinocactus setispinus''.The genus name "''Theloocactus''" derives from the Greek word "Thelo" (wart or nipple) referred to the ribs with closely spaced nipples, while the species name "''setispinus''" comes from the Latin “seta” meaning “bristle” and “spina” meaning “thorn, spine”.Urs Eggli, Leonard E. Newton: Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names. Birkhäuser 2004 Edward Frederick Anderson placed the species in the genus ''Thelocactus'' in 1987.

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q150807 setispinus Flora of Mexico Flora of Texas