Scientific name:
Echinocereus bonkerae
Common name:
Bonker hedgehog, short-pined strawberry cactus
Range:
Central Arizona, between Payson, Mammoth and San Carlos
Form:
Single or clusters of stems; individuals up to 8 inches high
Habitat:
From valley floors to woodland at 6,500 feet
Flowers:
Pinkish purple, produced between March and May
Distribution map for echinocereus bonkerae
The Bonker hedgehog, echinocereus bonkerae (named after botanist Frances Bonker), is the rarest echinocereus in Arizona, found in a small area in the center of the state, between Payson and San Carlos Lake, and a little way south towards the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson.
The species is quite distinctive because of its short, bristly spines, different to most other, long-spined species; the 11 to 14 radials and one or two centrals are all about the same length, a third of an inch or less, and have brownish tips. The green stem is clearly visible beneath the spines, which are borne along distinct ribs, numbering between 12 and 18. Stems are up to 14 inches tall, and they form clusters, of 30 or more.
The flowers are large, up to 4 inches across, colored deep pink with a yellow interior. Stamens have pale yellow filaments and yellow anthers; stigma lobes are green. Fruits are red and spiny, up to one inch across.
Echinocereus fendleri is the most similar species, but the ranges are different, and the spines of the Bonker hedgehog are noticeably thinner and more numerous. It is also somewhat similar to echinocereus fasciculatus, though this has fewer ribs.
The species is quite distinctive because of its short, bristly spines, different to most other, long-spined species; the 11 to 14 radials and one or two centrals are all about the same length, a third of an inch or less, and have brownish tips. The green stem is clearly visible beneath the spines, which are borne along distinct ribs, numbering between 12 and 18. Stems are up to 14 inches tall, and they form clusters, of 30 or more.
The flowers are large, up to 4 inches across, colored deep pink with a yellow interior. Stamens have pale yellow filaments and yellow anthers; stigma lobes are green. Fruits are red and spiny, up to one inch across.
Echinocereus fendleri is the most similar species, but the ranges are different, and the spines of the Bonker hedgehog are noticeably thinner and more numerous. It is also somewhat similar to echinocereus fasciculatus, though this has fewer ribs.
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