''Opuntia engelmannii'' is a prickly pear common across the south-central and

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

and northern

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. It goes by a variety of common names, including desert prickly pear, discus prickly pear, Engelmann's prickly pear in the US, and nopal, abrojo, joconostle, and vela de coyote in Mexico. The nomenclatural history of this species is somewhat complicated due to the varieties, as well as its habit of hybridizing with '' Opuntia phaeacantha''. It differs from '' Opuntia phaeacantha'' by being green year round instead of turning reddish purple during winter or dry seasons, as well as having yellow flowers with red centers.

Varieties

*''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''cuija'' — nopal cuijo; endemic to Mexico, in Guanajuato, Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí. *''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''engelmannii'' — Engelmann's prickly pear; Mexico, southwestern U.S., California *''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''flavispina'' — yellow-spined prickly pear; Arizona, Mexico *''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''laevis'' — smooth prickly pear; Arizona * ''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''lindheimeri'' — Texas prickly pear; endemic to U.S. in Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas. *''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''linguiformis'' — cow's tongue cactus, cow tongue prickly pear; Texas ''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''flexospina'' is most likely a spiny form of '' Opuntia aciculata''. Balchik Botanical Garden 2017 53.jpg, ''O. e.'' var. ''engelmannii'' Opuntia engelmannii flavispina 1zz.jpg, ''O. e.'' var. ''flavispina'' Flower Opuntia engelmannii var lindheimeri.jpg, An unusual orange-red form of ''O. e.'' var. ''lindheimeri'' Cacti, Porto Botanical gardens..jpg, ''O. e.'' var. ''linguiformis'' Opuntia17 filtered.jpg, ''O. e.'' var. ''laevis'' (right)

Distribution

The ''Opuntia engelmannii'' range extends from

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Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

in the United States, and from

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

(state) and Chihuahua (state), to the

Tamaulipan matorral The Tamaulipan matorral is an ecoregion in the deserts and xeric shrublands biome on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Madre Oriental range in northeastern Mexico. It is a transitional ecoregion between the Tamaulipan mezquital and the Sierra Ma ...

in north and central Tamaulipas. In the

Sonoran Desert The Sonoran Desert () is a hot desert and ecoregion in North America that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the Southwestern United States (in Arizona and California). It ...

, terminal pads face predominantly east-west, so as to maximize the absorption of solar radiation during summer rains. Although found occasionally in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert (; ; ) is a desert in the rain shadow of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains and Transverse Ranges in the Southwestern United States. Named for the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous Mohave people, it is located pr ...

, it tends to be replaced by '' Opuntia basilaris'', which does not need the summer rain.

Naturalised Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...

in southern and eastern

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, including Loisaba in

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Description

''Opuntia engelmannii'' is generally shrubby, with dense clumps up to high, usually with no apparent trunk. The pads are green (rarely blue-green), obovate to round, about 15–30 cm long and 12–20 cm wide. The

glochid Glochids or glochidia (: "glochidium") are hair-like spines or short prickles, generally barbed, found on the areoles of Cactus, cacti in the sub-family ''Opuntioideae''. Cactus glochids easily detach from the plant and lodge in the skin, causi ...

s are yellow initially, then brown with age. Spines are extremely variable, with anywhere from 1-8 per areole, and often absent from lower areoles; they are yellow to white, slightly flattened, and 1–6 cm long. The flowers are yellow, occasionally reddish, 5–8 cm in diameter and about as long. Flowering is in April and May, with each bloom lasting only one day, opening at about 08:00 A.M. and closing 8 hours later. Pollinators include

solitary bee Solitary is the state of being alone or in solitude. The term may refer to: * Solitary (album), ''Solitary'' (album), 2008 album by Don Dokken * Solitary (2020 film), ''Solitary'' (2020 film), a British sci-fi thriller film * Solitary (upcoming fi ...

s, such as the Antophoridae, and

sap beetle The sap beetles, also known as Nitidulidae, are a family (biology), family of beetles. They are small (2–6 mm) ovoid, usually dull-coloured beetles, with knobbed antenna (biology), antennae. Some have red or yellow spots or bands. They fe ...

s. The purple fleshy fruits are 3–7 cm long.

Uses

The fruits were a reliable summer food for Native American tribes.U. of Michigan: Native American Ethnobotany Database
/ref> The Tohono O'odham of the Sonoran Desert in particular classified the fruits by color, time of ripening, and how well they kept in storage. ''Opuntia engelmannii'' is cultivated as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

, for use in

drought tolerant In botany, drought tolerance is the ability by which a plant maintains its biomass production during arid or drought conditions. Some plants are naturally adapted to dry conditions'','' surviving with protection mechanisms such as desiccation tole ...

gardens, container plantings, and

natural landscaping Natural landscaping, also called native gardening, is the use of native plants including trees, shrubs, groundcover, and grasses which are local to the geographic area of the garden. Benefits Maintenance Natural landscaping is adapted to t ...

projects.Master Gardeners of the University of Arizona Pima County Cooperative Extension — ''Opuntia engelmannii''
/ref>

References

* Edward F. Anderson, ''The Cactus Family'' (Timber Press, 2001), pp. 497–498 * Raymond M. Turner, Janice E. Bowers, and Tony L. Burgess, ''Sonoran Desert Plants: an Ecological Atlas'' (Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 1995) pp. 291–293

External links

USDA Plants Profile for ''Opuntia engelmannii'' var. ''lindheimeri'' (Texas pricklypear)''Opuntia engelmannii'' — U.C. Photo galleryHerbarium specimenOpuntia engelmannii photo gallery at Opuntia Web
{{Authority control engelmannii Cacti of Mexico Cacti of the United States North American desert flora Flora of the California desert regions Flora of the Chihuahuan Desert Flora of the Sonoran Deserts Flora of Northwestern Mexico Flora of Northeastern Mexico Flora of Central Mexico Flora of the Southwestern United States Flora of Arizona Flora of California Flora of Nevada Flora of New Mexico Flora of Texas Flora of Oklahoma Flora of Louisiana Flora of Utah Flora of Chihuahua (state) Flora of Sonora Desert fruits Plants used in Native American cuisine