Opuntia stricta (Coastal Prickly Pear, Eltham Indian Fig, Erect pricklypear, Erect Prickly-Pear, Erect Pricklypear Cactus, Pakan, Pest Pricklypear, Spineless prickly Pear, Sweet Prickly Pear, Yaaxpakan)

Overview

Shrub . Opuntia stricta is a cactus of up to 2m height , which originates in central America. This spiny shrub favours habitats such as rocky slopes , river banks and urban areas. It was considered to be Australias worst ever weed . Opuntia stricta is also invasive in South Africa, where biological options are currently being explored to control the problem. Cultivated for Medicinal/culinary uses in some areas, (Thomas and Randall, 2001).

Common Names

[ Back to top ]

Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Afrikaans:

Suurturksvy

Common Names in English:

Araluen Pear, Australian Pest Pear, Coastal Prickly Pear, Coastal Prickly-Pear, Common Pest Pear, Common Prickly Pear, Dildo, Eltham Indian Fig, Eltham Indian-Fig, Erect Pricklypear, Erect Prickly Pear, Erect Prickly-Pear, Erect Pricklypear, Erect Pricklypear Cactus, Gayndah Pear, Pakan, Pest Pear of Australia, Pest Prickly-Pear, Pest Pricklypear, Sour Prickly Pear, Southern Spineless Cactus, Southern Spineless Cactus (Usa), Spineless Prickly Pear, Spiny Pest Pear, Suurturksvy, Sweet Prickly Pear, Sweet Prickly-Pear, Yaaxpakan

Common Names in German:

Feigenkaktus

Common Names in Portuguese:

Opúntia, Palma-De-Espinho, Palmatória

Common Names in Spanish:

Chumbera, Nopal Estricto

Common Names in Spanish (Mex:

Yaaxpakan

Description

[ Back to top ]

Family Cactaceae

Fleshy perennials , shrubs , trees or vines , terrestrial or epiphytic. Stems jointed , terete , globose , flattened, or fluted , mostly leafless and variously spiny . Leaves alternate, flat or subulate to terete, vestigial , or entirely absent; spines, glochids (easily detached, small, bristlelike spines), and flowers always arising from cushionlike, axillary areoles (modified short shoots ) . Flowers solitary, sessile, rarely clustered and stalked (in Pereskia), bisexual , rarely unisexual , actinomorphic or occasionally zygomorphic. Receptacle tube (hypanthium or perianth tube) absent or short to elongate , naked or invested with leaflike bracts, scales , areoles, and hairs , bristles , or spines; perianth segments usually numerous , in a sepaloid to petaloid series. Stamens numerous, variously inserted in throat and tube; anthers 2-loculed, dehiscing longitudinally. Ovary (pericarpel) inferior, rarely superior, 1-loculed, with 3 to many parietal (rarely basal) placentas; ovules usually numerous; style 1; stigmas 2 to numerous, papillate , rarely 2-fid. Fruit juicy or dry, naked, scaly , hairy , bristly , or spiny, indehiscent or dehiscent , when juicy then pulp derived from often deliquescent funicles (except in Pereskia) . Seeds usually numerous, often arillate or strophiolate ; embryo curved or rarely straight; endosperm present or absent; cotyledons reduced or vestigial, rarely leaflike.

About 110 genera and more than 1000 species: temperate and tropical America; Rhipsalis baccifera (J. S. Mueller) Stearn native in tropical Africa, Madagascar, Comoros, Mascarenes, and Sri Lanka; some species of other genera now extensively naturalized in the Old World through human agency; more than 60 genera and 600 species cultivated as ornamentals or hedges in China, of which four genera and seven species more or less naturalized.Zhen-yu Li & Nigel P. Taylor "Cactaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 13 Page 209. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org.

Genus Opuntia

Trees or shrubs , erect to trailing , usually many branched, sometimes forming clumps or mats; trunk , when present, initially segmented , appearing continuous with age, main axis determinate, usually terete . Stem segments green or sometimes reddish to purple, usually flattened, circular, elliptic , ovate , lanceolate, or obovate to oblanceolate , 2-60(-120) × 1.2-40 cm, nearly smooth to tuberculate , glabrous or pubescent ; areoles usually elliptic, circular, or obovate, 3-8(-10) × 1-7(-10) mm; wool white, gray, or tan to brown, aging white or gray to black. Spines 0-15+ per areole, white, yellow to brown, red-brown to gray, or black, sometimes partly to wholly white chalky (chalkiness disappearing when wet), aging gray to dark brown to black, with epidermis intact, not sheathed, acicular to subulate , sometimes setose or with hairlike bristles , terete to angular-flattened, to 75(-170) mm, tips sometimes paler or yellow. Glochids in adaxial crescent at margin of areole, in tuft or encircling areole margin, white to yellow to brown, or red-brown, aging white to brown or red-brown. Flowers bisexual or sometimes functionally staminate , radially symmetric ; outer tepals green to yellow with margins tinged color of inner tepals; inner tepals pale yellow to orange, pink to red or magenta, rarely white (unicolored) or with base of a different color (bicolored ), oblong to spatulate , emarginate-apiculate; nectar chamber simple , open, not covered by proximal thickening style . Pollen yellow, grains reticulate or foveolate (opuntioid type). Fruits sometimes proliferating (sprouting from another fruit), if fleshy , green, yellow, or red to purple or, if dry, tan to gray, straight, sometimes stipitate , clavate to cylindric , ovoid , or obovoid to subspheric, 10-120 × 8-120 mm, fleshy to juicy or dry, smooth or tuberculate, spineless or spiny , sometimes burlike. Seeds pale yellow to tan or gray, generally circular to reniform , flattened (discoid ) to subspheric, angular to squarish, sometimes warped, 2-7 × 2-7 mm, glabrous, commonly bearing 1-4 large, shallow depressions due to pressures from adjacent developing seeds; girdle protruding 0.3-3.5 mm, forming ridge or flat wing, or not protruding. x = 11.

Species ca. 150 species: widespread in North America, Mexico, West Indies, South America, including the GalÃ¡pagos Islands; some species introduced to and naturalized in the Old World.

Many taxa are cultivated for ornamental plants , food, and animal fodder . Some species of Opuntia become obnoxious weeds ; some species have been planted in Africa for stabilization of sand dunes.

Many interspecific hybrids are known and have been named; only five are fully treated here; two other named hybrids recognized by the author are briefly described and cross-referenced under putative parent taxa.Donald J. Pinkava "Opuntia". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 93, 94, 95, 102, 123, 232, 381. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org.

Physical Description

Species Opuntia stricta

Shrubs, sprawling or erect , to 2 m. Stem segments not dis-articulating, green, flattened, narrowly elliptic or obovate , 10-25(-40) × 7.5-15(-25) cm, tuberculate , making margins appear scalloped between raised areoles, glabrous ; areoles 3-5 per diagonal row across midstem segment, oval , 3-6.5 × 3.5 mm; wool dense, tan. Spines 0-11 per areole, in nearly all areoles to only in some marginal areoles or absent, spreading in all directions , yellow, aging brown, straight or curving, the longest stout, oval in cross section , 12-40(-60) mm, not markedly barbed . Glochids in-conspicuous, few to many in crescent at adaxial edge of areole, yellow, aging brown, often incurved , subequal to increasing in length toward adaxial edge of areole, to 4 mm. Flowers: inner tepals light yellow throughout, 25-30 mm; filaments yellow; anthers yellow; style and stigma lobes yellowish. Fruits purplish throughout, stipitate , ellipsoid or barrel-shaped, 40-60 × 25-30(-40) mm, juicy, spineless; areoles 6-10. Seeds tan, subcircular, 4-5 × 4-4.5 mm, with slightly irregular surface; girdle protruding to 1 mm. 2n = 44 (cultivated), 66. Flowering spring-summer (Feb-Jul). [source]

Opuntia stricta hybridizes with O. engelmannii (apparently var. lindheimeri) forming O. ×alta Griffiths (as species) along the coast of southeastern Texas and adjacent Louisiana. The hexaploid hybrid is arborescent to 3 m ; it has stem segments subcircular to oblong-ovate, with a glochid pattern intermediate of the putative parents, all yellow spines, and light green stigma lobes. [source]

Habit: Deciduous.

Flowers: Bloom Period: March, April, May. • Flower Color: gold, orange, red, yellow-orange, yellow

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 18-24" tall.

Habitat

Coastal sand dunes, hammocks , edges of maritime forests , shell middens; 0 m (Ref. 51176).

Originally garden plants or used for fencing, they may occur close to old buildings, but can also be spread far from habitation, (ESC). Rocky slopes and river banks are favoured habitats , (ESC).

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 817 meters (0 to 2,680 feet).Mean = 135.220 meters (443.635 feet), Standard Deviation = 208.180 based on 65 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre.

Biome: agricultural areas, disturbed areas, scrub/shrublands, tundra , urban areas, water courses

Ecology: Dense infestations can impede movement, (ESC). Prickly pears can dominate the vegetation of rocky outcrops displacing native species , some of which may be restricted to such outcrops, and consequently be relatively rare, (ESC). Opuntia stricta (Haworth) has invaded and formed dense infestations over large areas of the Kruger National Park in South Africa, (SANP). It was considered to be Australias worst ever weed burying approximately 24 million ha of Queensland under a mat up to 2 metres deep.

Biology

[ Back to top ]

Reproduction

Seed, (PIER , 2003). The segments will take root from the "eyes" if left in contact with the ground , and because they are so succulent, they remain capable of rooting for several months after being detached from the parent plant, (ESC). They can be moved in floods leading to infestations along river banks, (ESC).

Growth

Culture: Space 24-36" apart.

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 9b, 10a, 10b, 11. (map)

Taxonomy

[ Back to top ]

Domain: Eukaryota () - Whittaker & Margulis,1978
- Kingdom: Plantae () - Haeckel, 1866 - Plants
  - Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae () - Cavalier-Smith, 1981
    - Phylum: Tracheophyta () - Sinnott, 1935 Ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998 - Vascular Plants
      - Subphylum: Euphyllophytina ()
        Infraphylum: Radiatopses () - Kenrick & Crane, 1997
        Class: Magnoliopsida () - Brongniart, 1843 - Dicotyledons
        Subclass: Caryophyllidae () - Takhtajan, 1967
        Superorder: Caryophyllanae () - Takhtajan, 1967
        Order: Caryophyllales () - Perleb, 1826
        Suborder: Portulacineae ()
        Family: Cactaceae () - Durande, 1782, Nom. Cons. - Cactus Family
        Subfamily: Opuntioideae ()
        Tribe: Opuntieae ()
        Genus: Opuntia () - Miller, Gard. Dict. Abr., ed. 4. vol. 2. 1754. - Pricklypear, nopal [origin uncertain; possibly based on name of Greek town (Opus perhaps) where a cactus-like plant grew]
        Specific epithet: stricta - (Haworth) Haworth, Syn. Pl. Succ. 191. 1812.
        Botanical name: - Opuntia stricta (Haw.) Haw.

Unambiguous Synonyms

Cactus strictus Haw.
Opuntia stricta (Haw.) Haw.
Opuntia stricta (Haworth) Haworth

Notes

Publishing author : Haw. Publication : Misc. Nat. 188 1803 Publishing author: Ker Gawl. Publication: Bot. Reg. 3: t. 255 1818 A tentatively accepted name in the RHS Horticultural Database.

Name Status: Accepted Name. Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 15-Mar-2000

Place of publication: Syn. pl. succ. 191. 1812

Name verified on 30-Jun-1999 by ARS Systematic Botanists. Last updated: 29-Aug-2003

Similar Species

[ Back to top ]

Members of the genus Opuntia

There are approximately 1498 species in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

Bibliography

[ Back to top ]

Anderson, E. F. (2001): The Cactus Family, Timber Press, Protland, Oregon
Anderson, E. F. 2001. The cactus family. (Cact Fam) 520.
Backeberg, C. 1977. Das Kakteen Lexicon. 331.
Benson, L. 1982. The cacti of the United States and Canada. (Cact US Can) 931.
Bravo-Hollis, H. & H. Sánchez-Mejorada. Las Cactáceas de México, vol. 1 - 1978, vols. 2,3 - 1991 (Cact Mex) 278–280.
Correll, D. S. & M. C. Johnston. 1970. Manual of the vascular plants of Texas. (F Tex)
Erhardt, W. et al. 2002. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 17. Auflage. (Zander ed17)
FNA Editorial Committee. 1993–. Flora of North America. (F NAmer)
George, A. S., ed. 1980–. Flora of Australia, new ed. (F Aust)
Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12. (Weeds SAfr 2001)
Holm, L. et al. 1979. A geographical atlas of world weeds. (Atlas WWeed)
Hosking, J. R. et al. 1988. Pl. Protect. Quart. 3:120.
Hunt, D. 1992. CITES Cactaceae checklist. (CITES Cact L)
Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia. (Econ Pl Aust)
León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946–1962. Flora de Cuba.; suppl. 1969 (F CubaLeon)
Pacific Islands Ecosystems at Risk, (PIER)
Parsons, W. T. & E. G. Cuthbertson. 1992. Noxious weeds of Australia. (Noxweed Aust)
Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964–1980. Flora europaea. (F Eur)
Weber, E. 2003. Invasive plant species of the world: a reference guide to environmental weeds. (Invasive Pl Spec)
.Li Zhenyu. 1999. Cactaceae. In: Ku Tsuechih, ed., Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 52(1): 272-285.
Grant, V. and K. A. Grant. 1979. Systematics of the Opuntia phaeacantha group in Texas. Bot. Gaz. 140: 199-207.
Parfitt, B. D. and M. A. Baker. 1993. Opuntia. In: J. C. Hickman, ed. 1993. The Jepson Manual. Higher Plants of California. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London. Pp. 452-457.
Philbrick, R. N. 1963. Biosystematic studies of two Pacific coast opuntias. Ph.D. thesis. Cornell University.
Pinkava, D. J. 2003. Cactaceae cactus family: Part 6. J. Arizona-Nevada Acad. Sci. 35: 137-150.

More Info

[ Back to top ]

Search for Pictures: images.google.com
Search for Scholarly Articles: Google Scholar
Search using Scientific Name and Vernacular Names: All the Web | AltaVista Canada | AltaVista | Excite | Google | HotBot | Lycos
Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books

Notes

[ Back to top ]

Contributors

"Opuntia stricta". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 125, 127, 133. Published by Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org.
Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed April 6, 2007.
Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed January 08, 2007. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 2 providers.
MBLWHOI Library: Universal Biological Index and Organizer. uBio.org accessed July 17, 2008.
The International Plant Names Index. Accessed Jan 19, 2007.
USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN) [Online Database]. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. URL (April 25, 2008)

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal December 06, 2007:

Australian National Herbarium
, Australian National Herbarium
Comisión nacional para el conocimiento y uso de la biodiversidad, Herbario del Instituto de Ecología, A.C., México
Missouri Botanical Garden, Missouri Botanical Garden
USDA PLANTS, USDA PLANTS Database

Identifiers

Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2646196
Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-19736
Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13736531
Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:51165-3
GRIN Nomen Number: 25872

Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 19736
Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: PDCAC0D1C0
Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 17558

Opuntia stricta

Overview

Common Names

Description

Family Cactaceae

Genus Opuntia

Physical Description

Species Opuntia stricta

Size/Age/Growth

Habitat

Biology

Reproduction

Growth

Taxonomy

Unambiguous Synonyms

Notes

Similar Species

Members of the genus Opuntia

Bibliography

More Info

Notes

Contributors

Data Sources

Identifiers

Footnotes