cactusclassification – Page 27 – THE LAST CACTUS CLASSIFICATION

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016

EPITHELANTHA

http://w3.biosci.utexas.edu/prc/DF/images/EPMI2.jpg

Autor: Britton & Rose

• ETYMOLOGY
“Flower on the nipple”, because in this genus, flowers are situated at the top of the tubercles of the species.
• DESCRIPTION
A genus of tiny plants, solitary to densely branched, variable in shape, size, spination, and colour. Stem more or less flattened, clavate, covered by dense tiny spines. Central and radial spines usually indiscernible.
Flowers diurnal, very small, appearing at the apex of stems, bell-shaped, white to pale pink, pollinated by small insects, although a species (E. micromeris) is self-fertile. Fruits clavate to elongated, naked, indehiscent, red, containing few seeds. Seeds helmet-shaped, shiny, papillose or reticulate, black.
• HABITAT
The genus Epithelantha usually grows on limestone or basalt soils, in gravel or crevices of rocks, in a matorral (xerophytic scrub), with many cacti and other succulents, in the middle of a vegetation of spiny shrubs, or in the shade in forests, but also in full sun, in desert grasslands of the Chihuahuan desert, among bushes, from 300 m (E. ilariae) up to 2300 m in altitude (E. pachyrhiza). Some natural sowings develop including in the selaginellas (spikemosses) which sometimes accompany them (Selaginella lepidophylla, pers. obs.).
• DISTRIBUTION
Mexico (Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi), USA (Arizona, New Mexico, Texas).

Currently 7 possible species + 6 likely subspecies:
– Epithelantha bokei* L.D.Benson 1969
– Epithelantha cryptica D.Donati & Zanovello 2011
– Epithelantha greggii (Engelm.) Orcutt 1926
– Epithelantha greggii subsp. polycephala (Backeberg) D.Donati & Zanovello (2010)
– Epithelantha greggii subsp. potosina D.Donati & Zanovello 2010
– Epithelantha ilariae D.Donati & Zanovello 2010
– Epithelantha micromeris* (Engelm.) F.A.C.Weber 1898
– Epithelantha pachyrhiza Backeb. 1954
– Epithelantha pachyrhiza subsp. elongata (Backeberg) D.Donati & Zanovello (2010)
– Epithelantha pachyrhiza subsp. parvula D.Donati & Zanovello 2010
– Epithelantha pachyrhiza subsp. pulchra D.Donati & Zanovello 2010
– Epithelantha unguispina (Boed.) D.Donati & Zanovello 2010
– Epithelantha unguispina subsp. huastecana D.Donati & Zanovello 2010

References: "TAXONOMY of the CACTACEAE" -  ISBN 978-84-617-3723-9 (Vol. 1)

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016

EPIPHYLLUM

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m177/Kiwoncello/Epiox2009.jpg

Autor: Haworth

• ETYMOLOGY
“On the leaf” referring to the flowers which seemed, to early botanists, to appear on leaves, in fact modified stems (phylloclades).
• DESCRIPTION
A genus of usually epiphytic plants, with flattened stems having the aspect and the function of leaves (phylloclades) often with adventitious roots, with variable margins according to species, crenulate, serrate, toothed, lobed etc.
Flowers nocturnal, self-sterile, funnel-shaped, with a very long floral tube, white or pale yellow, very fragrant, pollinated by moths (Sphingideae) and bats (Artibeus jamaicensis and A. lituratus for E. hookeri). Fruits egg-shaped or oblong, fleshy, often with well marked edges. Seeds covered by mucilage, kidney-shaped, black, shiny. Dispersion of seeds provided by mammals (bats and small monkeys).
• HABITAT
The genus Epiphyllum has a wide geographic distribution, and grows epiphytically on trees, in tropical dry forests, in the shade, in hollows with accumulated decaying plant material, from the sea level up to 2200 m in altitude. It is sometimes found in swampy areas, clinging to tree trunks (Pachira aquatica) and mangroves (Rhizophora mangle), for example in southern Mexico in Yucatan, also in mountain areas and volcanic chains.
• DISTRIBUTION
Argentina (Misiones), Bolivia (La Paz, Santa Cruz), Brazil (Acre, Bahia, Mato Grosso, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro), Caribbean islands, Belize, Colombia (Antioquia, Caldas, Choco, Cundinamarca, Huila, Magdalena, Quindio, Tolima, Valle), Costa Rica (Alajuela, Cartago, Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose), Cuba, El Salvador (Ahuachapan), Ecuador (Azuay, Canar, Chimborazo, Guayas, Los Rios, Manabi), Guatemala (Alta & Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Jalapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retalhuleu, Sacatepequez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepequez, Totonicapan), Guyana, Guyana Francesa, Honduras (Atlantida, Francisco Morazan), Jamaica, Mexico (Chiapas, Guerrero, Jalisco, Mexico DF, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Tabasco), Nicaragua, Panama (Bocas del Toro, Colon), Paraguay (Alto Parana, Amambay, Canindeyu, Central, Cordillera, Guaira, Itapua, Misiones, Paraguari), Peru (Amazonas, Cajamarca, Cuzco, Junin, Pasco, Piura, Puno, San Martin), Surinam, Trinidad & Tobago, USA (Florida), Venezuela (Amazonas, Anzoategui, Aragua, Monagas, Sucre, Yaracuy, Zulia).

Currently 12 species + 6 subspecies (according to Bauer 2003):
– Epiphyllum anguliger (Lem.) D.Don 1855
– Epiphyllum baueri Dorsch 2003
– Epiphyllum cartagense (F.A.C.Weber) Britton & Rose 1913
– Epiphyllum crenatum (Lindi.) D.Don 1855
– Epiphyllum crenatum subsp. kimnachii (Kimnach) Guzman 2003
– Epiphyllum grandilobum (F.A.C.Weber) Britton & Rose 1913
– Epiphyllum hookeri (Link & Otto) Haw. 1829
– Epiphyllum hookeri subsp. columbiense (Weber) Bauer 2003
– Epiphyllum hookeri subsp. guatemalense* (Britton & Rose) Bauer 2003
– Epiphyllum hookeri subsp. pittieri (Weber) Bauer 2003
– Epiphyllum laui Kimnach 1990
– Epiphyllum lepidocarpum (F.A.C.Weber) Britton & Rose 1913
– Epiphyllum oxypetalum* (DC.) Haw. 1829
– Epiphyllum phyllanthus* (L .) Haw. 1826
– Epiphyllum phyllanthus subsp. rubrocoronatum (Kimnach) Bauer 2003
– Epiphyllum pumilum Britton & Rose 1913
– Epiphyllum thomasianum (K.Schum.) Britton & Rose 1913
– Epiphyllum thomasianum subsp. costaricense (Weber) Bauer 2003

References: "TAXONOMY of the CACTACEAE" -  ISBN 978-84-617-3723-9 (Vol. 1)

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016

ECHINOPSIS

http://www.cactusinhabitat.org/images/uploads/254/b_05-1110850.JPG

Autor: Zuccarini

• ETYMOLOGY
“Similar to a hedgehog (or an urchin)” referring to the typical, globose and spiny aspect of the species within this genus.
• DESCRIPTION
Genus of plants globose to more or less elongated with age, sometimes cereoid, often caespitose, with ribs often protruding and more or less flattened. Spines straight or curved, aciculate to sturdy, rarely hooked like a fishhook.
Flowers diurnal, self-sterile, but more usually nocturnal, mostly white, also yellow or red, pollinated by bees (Anthrenoides spp., Brachyglossula communis, Callonychium sp., Ceratina catamarcensis, C. morrensis, Diadasia sp, Diaiictus sp., Lithurgus sp., Megachile sp., Pseudagapostemon jensenii) or sphingideae (Callionimo grisescens, Erinnyis elio, E. lassauxii, E. oenotrus, Eumorpha analis, E. neuburgeri, Euryglottis aper, Hyles euphorbiarum, H. lineata, Manduca armatipes, M. bergi, M. diffissa, M. sexta, M. stuarti, M. tucumana, Sphinx maura, S. phalerata, Xylophones pluto, X. schreiteri, X. tersa), more rarely by hummingbirds. Floral tube hairy, usually very long. Fruits rather small, spherical to egg-shaped, more or less hairy. Seeds variable, pretty small, black, reticulate, striate, tuberculate or papillose. Dispersion is probably provided by ants (myrmecochory).
• HABITAT
The genus Echinopsis grows in woodland areas or grasslands, especially in meadows with rocky islets, on stony soils, in crevices of rocks; it is also partially found on saline soils (E. klingeriana), among a bushy to shrubby vegetation, or among grasses, under a humid climate characterized by a dry season during the austral summer, from 400 m up to 2400 m in altitude, together with other cacti, sometimes settled on termite mounds (E. aldolfo-friedrichii)!
• DISTRIBUTION
Argentina (Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Entre Rios, Formosa, Jujuy, Rio Negro, Salta, Tucuman), Bolivia (Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, La Paz, Santa Cruz, Tarija), Brazil (Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul), Paraguay (Alto Paraguay, Boqueron, Central, Concepcion, Guaira, Paraguari, Presidente Hayes, San Pedro), Uruguay (Durazno, Paysandu, Salto, Tacuarembo).

Currently 23 species to debate + 2 possible subspecies:
– Echinopsis adolfofriedrichii G. Moser 1982
– Echinopsis albispinosa* K. Schum. 1903 (= E. silvestrii)
– Echinopsis ancistrophora* Spegazzini 1905
– Echinopsis ayopayana F. Ritter & Rausch 1968
– Echinopsis boyuibensis* F.Ritter 1965
– Echinopsis bridgesii* Salm-Dyck 1850 (non Trichocereus bridgesii)
– Echinopsis bridgesii subsp. vallegrandensis* (Cardenas) Lowry 2005 (= E. huotii)
– Echinopsis bridgesii subsp. yungasensis (F.Ritter) Braun & Esteves 1995
– Echinopsis calochlora* K.Schum. 1903
– Echinopsis comarapana* Cardenas 1957
– Echinopsis coronata* Cardenas 1957
– Echinopsis eyriesii* (Turpin) Pfeif. & Otto 1839
– Echinopsis hammerschmidii Cardenas 1956
– Echinopsis klingeriana Cardenas 1965 (= E. rhodotricha ssp. chacoana)
– Echinopsis leucantha* (Gillies ex Salm-Dyck) Walpers 1843
– Echinopsis mamillosa* Gurke 1907
– Echinopsis minuana Spegazzini 1905 (= E. robinsorum)
– Echinopsis oxygona* (Link) Zucc. ex Pfeiff. & Otto 1839
– Echinopsis pamparuizii Cardenas 1970 (could well be a Lobivia)
– Echinopsis rhodotricha K.Schumann 1900
– Echinopsis rojasii Cardenas 1951
– Echinopsis semidenudata (Cardenas) W.Haage 1977
– Echinopsis subdenudata* Cardenas 1956
– Echinopsis sucrensis* Cardenas 1963
– Echinopsis tubiflora* (Pfeiff.) Zucc. ex A.Dietrich 1846

References: "TAXONOMY of the CACTACEAE" -  ISBN 978-84-617-3723-9 (Vol. 1)

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016

ECHINOMASTUS

Autor: Britton & Rose

• ETYMOLOGY
“Breast-hedgehog (or urchin)” by analogy, because the species of the genus are globose and covered with spines.
• DESCRIPTION
A genus of solitary plants, globose to shortly cylindrical, radial spines usually covering the epidermis, aciculate, central spine sometimes absent. Spiralled low ribs, tubercles having a groove on the top, the areoles often with nectariferous glands.
Flowers diurnal, self sterile, appearing at the apex of stem, at the top of tubercles, with floral tube short or absent, white, yellow, brown, pink, magenta or purple, pollinated by bees (Megachile palmensis, Diadasia rinconis…) and diptera. Fruits scaly, elongated, basally dehiscent. Seeds ovate to kidney-shaped, finely papillose, black. Dispersion of seeds through myrmecochory and hydrochory.
• HABITAT
The genus Echinomastus grows in reduced and localized colonies, in deserts or grasslands, hilly slopes facing south or east, on quite different soils, very often on limestone, also decomposed granite (￡. erectocentrus), lavas rich in silicate or metamorphic rocks, in alluvial fans, from 200 m up to 2400 m in altitude, together with a few other cacti.
• DISTRIBUTION
Mexico (Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, San Luis Potosi, Zacatecas), USA (Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah).

Currently 8 recognised species (among which three and maybe more are conflicting) +
two subspecies and one variety:
– Echinomastus durangensis (Runge) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinomastus erectocentrus* (J.M.Coult.) Britton & Rose 1922 = Sclerocactus?
– Echinomastus gautii (L.D.Benson) Mosco & Zanovello 1997 = incertae sedis
– Echinomastus hispidus Davide & Zanovello 2004
– Echinomastus intertextus* (Engelm.) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinomastus johnsonii* (Engelm.) E M.Baxter 1935 = Sclerocactus?
– Echinomastus johnsonii var. lutescens (Parish) Wiggins in Shreve & Wiggins 1964 = Sclerocactus?
– Echinomastus mariposensis* Hester 1945
– Echinomastus unguispinus* (Engelm.) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinomastus unguispinus subsp. laui (G.Frank & Zecher) Glass 1998
– Echinomastus warnockii* (L.D.Benson) Glass & R.Foster 1975

References: "TAXONOMY of the CACTACEAE" -  ISBN 978-84-617-3723-9 (Vol. 1)

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016

ECHINOFOSSULOCACTUS

Autor: Lawrence

• ETYMOLOGY
“Cactus hedgehog (or urchin) with grooves (or furrows)”, characterizing both the spiny character of the genus, and the fact that it has strongly grooved ribs.
• DESCRIPTION
A genus of low-growing, rather small plants, globose flattened to shortly cylindrical, usually solitary, sometimes weakly caespitose, with ribs often numerous (up to 120), fine and wavy, with few areoles, usually widely spaced. Spines o two types: the upper ones thicker, longer, often dagger-shaped, the lower, smaller, often hyaline.
Flowers diurnal, rather small, appearing at the apex of stems, with a short floral tube, whitish, yellow or more often pink purple to purplish violet, striped purple or brown, pollinated by insects, especially bees (Ceratina sp. among others). Fruits rather small, globose, bearing scales, laterally dehiscent. Seeds subglobose, blackish-brown, shiny, reticulate, dispersion probably myrmecophilous (ants).
• HABITAT
The genus Echinofossulocactus grows mostly at ground level, very mimetic, mostly in the shade of grasses, bushes and shrubs, in mountains, on stony plains, grasslands rich in humus and with a rainy season, on rocky soils, between limestone rocks in cracks, in association with a rich succulent flora (other cacti, Bromeliads, Agaves etc.), from 600 up to 2800 m in altitude.
• DISTRIBUTION
Mexico (Aguascalientes, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico DF, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca. Puebla, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi, Tlaxcala, Zacatecas).

Currently considerably reduced to 12 species, obviously still to debate:
– Echinofossulocactus coptonogonus* (Lem.) Lawr. 1841
– Echinofossulocactus crispatus* (DC.) Lawr. 1841
– Echinofossulocactus dichroacanthus* (Mart, ex Pfeiff.) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinofossulocactus lamellosus (A.Dletr.) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinofossulocactus multicostatus* Hlldm. ex K.Schum.) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinofossulocactus lloydii* Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinofossulocactus obvallatus* (DC.) Lawr. 1841
– Echinofossulocactus ochoterenanus* (Tlegel) H.C.Whltm. 1934 (= E. heteracanthus ?)
– Echinofossulocactus pentacanthus* (Lem.) Britton & Rose 1922
– Echinofossulocactus phyllacanthus* (A.Dietr. & Otto) Lawrence 1841
– Echinofossulocactus sulphureus Whitm . 1934
– Echinofossulocactus vaupelianus* (Werderm.) H.C.Whltm. 1934

References: "TAXONOMY of the CACTACEAE" -  ISBN 978-84-617-3723-9 (Vol. 1)