''Soehrensia thelegona'' 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 Gree ...
in the ''
Soehrensia'' genus.
Description
''Soehrensia thelegona'' grows as a shrub with few branches. The tips of the prostrate to creeping shoots are slightly raised or erect. The cylindrical, dark green shoots have a diameter of 7 to 8 centimeters and are up to 2 meters long. There are about 12 low ribs, which are resolved into conspicuous hexagonal cusps. 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 on the tips of the humps are circular. Light yellow thorns emerge from them, which turn gray with age and often have a darker tip. The individual central spine protrudes and is 2 to 4 centimeters long. The six to seven needle-like marginal spines are spread out and are 1 to 2 centimeters long. The lowest marginal spines are the longest.
The funnel-shaped, white flowers open at night. They are up to 20 centimeters long and have a diameter of 15 centimeters. Its flower tube is covered with reddish bristles and hairs. The spherical to egg-shaped, yellowish to reddish fruits are tuberous and tear open. They have a diameter of up to 5 centimeters.
Distribution
It is native to north western
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and can be found in a small range that occurs in the provinces of
Tucumán,
Salta
Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...
and
Jujuy
San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies near ...
at altitudes of 500 to 1000 meters.
Taxonomy
The first description as ''Cereus thelegonus'' by
Frédéric Albert Constantin Weber Frédéric Albert Constantin Weber (17 May 1830 in Wolfisheim – 27 July 1903 in Paris) was a French botanist, who specialized in Cactaceae.
In 1852 he received his medical doctorate from the University of Strasbourg with the thesis ''De l'hémor ...
was published in 1897.
The specific epithet thelegona is derived from the Greek words thele for 'wart' and gonia for 'edge' and refers to the tuberous ribs of the species. It was first published as ''Soehrensia thelegona'' in Cactaceae Syst. Init. vol.28: 31 in 2012 by Boris O. Schlumpberger .
Further nomenclature synonyms are ''Trichocereus thelegonus'' (F.A.C.Weber) Britton & Rose (1920) and ''Echinopsis thelegona'' (F.A.C.Weber) H. Friedrich & G.D. Rowley (1974).
References
External links
*
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1280651
Flora of Northwest Argentina
thelegona