Opuntia infesta
| Opuntia infesta | ||||||||||||
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| Opuntia infesta | ||||||||||||
| ( F.Ritter ) F.Ritter ex Iliff |
Opuntia infesta is a species of plant in the genus Opuntia ( Opuntia ) from the cactus family(Cactaceae). The specific epithet infesta means 'hostile'.
description
Opuntia infesta grows as a shrub with numerous semi-upright branches and reaches heights of up to 50 centimeters. The green, elongated to flattened cylindrical shoot sections are 5 to 14 inches long, 2 to 4 inches wide and up to 1.2 inches thick. The white areoles are 1 to 1.5 centimeters apart. The glochids are bright yellow. The two to four needle-like, straight thorns are orange-brown or yellow-brown and 2 to 4 inches long.
The bright orange-red flowers reach a length of up to 3.7 centimeters and a diameter of 2.5 centimeters. The obovate oval, yellowish green fruits are up to 1.5 centimeters long.
Distribution and systematics
Opuntia infesta is common in the Peruvian region of Ancash .
It was first described as Platyopuntia infesta in 1981 by Friedrich Ritter . James Iliff placed the species in 1997 in the genus Opuntia .
proof
literature
- Edward F. Anderson : The Great Cactus Lexicon . Eugen Ulmer KG, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-8001-4573-1 , p. 462 .