Opuntia

Prickly Pears

Kingdom	Plantae
Division	Magnoliophyta
Class	Magnoliopsida
Order	Caryophyllales
Family	Cactaceae
Genus	*Opuntia*

Species

Many, see text

Opuntia is a genus in the family of the Cactaceae. Both prickly pears and chollas are included in this genus of perhaps 250 species distributed throughout the New World. The type species of the Genus Opuntia is Cactus opuntia L. (currently as Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill.).

Prickly pears typically grow with flat, rounded segments that are amply armed with two kinds of spines: large, fixed spines and small, almost hairlike spines that easily penetrate skin and detach from the plant. Many types of prickly pear can grow into dense, tangled structures.

Prickly pears are the only types of cacti normally found in the eastern United States, and are the most cold-tolerant of the cacti.

Opuntia basilaris – commonly known as the Beavertail Cactus is found in southwest USA and northwest Mexico.
Opuntia ficus-indica – Native range is unknown, probably Mexico; cultivated in warm parts of the world for its edible fruit.
Opuntia fragilis – Little Prickly Pear; found in the northern Great Plains and as far west as British Columbia, also found in the southern Great Plains
Opuntia humifusa (also Opuntia compressa var humifusa) – Eastern Prickly Pear, found throughout the U. S. east of the Great Plains and into southern Ontario
Opuntia leucotricha – Arborescent Prickly Pear (other common names : AaronÃÂÃÂs Beard Cactus, Semaphore Cactus, Duraznillo Blanco, Nopal Blanco),: is a tree-like cactus, growing up to 5 m tall, occurring in the mountains of Central Mexico.
Opuntia macrorhiza – Plains Prickly Pear, found throughout the Great Plains except for the northernmost areas (not found in North Dakota), and extending sporadically eastward as far as Kentucky.

Opuntia ficus-indica growing on Kohala, Big Island of Hawai'i
Opuntia stricta – imported into Australia in the 1920s for use as a natural agricultural fence and quickly became a widespread weed, rendering 40,000 km² of farming land unproductive. The Cactoblastis moth, a South American moth whose larvae eat prickly pear, was introduced in 1925 and quickly almost wiped out the infestation. This case is often cited as a "textbook" example of successful biological pest control. The same moth, introduced accidentally further north of its native range into southern North America, is causing serious damage to some native species in that area.

External link

Prickly Pear Cactus in the North American desert