Scientific name:
Opuntia aureispina, opuntia macrocentra var aureispina
Common name:
Rio Grande prickly pear, golden-spined prickly pear
Range:
The Big Bend area of west Texas
Form:
Medium-sized, shrublike, branching from a central trunk
Habitat:
Desert plains, limestone terraces, hillsides
Flowers:
Orange-red, produced during the spring
Distribution map for opuntia aureispina
Opuntia aureispina is one of the more upright members of this large genus, branching from a trunk rather than growing along the ground, typically reaching heights of 3 to 5 feet, with dozens of stem segments. The flat pads are firmly attached to each other, blue-green to yellow-green in color, circular or oval in shape and around 4 inches in diameter. Areoles have between 3 and 5 major spines, up to 2 inches in length, 1 to 7 thinner, lighter-colored spines, less than one inch long, and a narrow ring of glochids. Spines are generally bright yellow to orange (or gold) in color, hence the species name aureispina.
Opuntia aureispina forms two hybrids: opuntia x spinosibacca (with opuntia phaeacantha) and opuntia x rooneyi (with opuntia macrocentra).
Opuntia aureispina forms two hybrids: opuntia x spinosibacca (with opuntia phaeacantha) and opuntia x rooneyi (with opuntia macrocentra).
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