Loxanthocereus acanthurus

Loxanthocereus acanthurus is a species of Loxanthocereus found in Peru.[2]

Loxanthocereus acanthurus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Genus: Loxanthocereus
Species:
L. acanthurus
Binomial name
Loxanthocereus acanthurus
(Vaupel) Backeb. 1937
Synonyms
  • Binghamia acanthura (Vaupel) Borg 1851
  • Borzicactus acanthurus (Vaupel) Britton & Rose 1920
  • Cereus acanthurus Vaupel 1913
  • Cleistocactus acanthurus (Vaupel) D.R.Hunt 1987
  • Echinopsis acanthura (Vaupel) Molinari 2015

Description

Loxanthocereus acanthurus grows shrubby with prostrate to creeping, ascending or hanging, up to 30 centimeters (rarely up to 50 centimeters) long shoots that have a diameter of 2 to 5 centimeters. There are 15 to 18 low, rounded ribs divided by sharp indentations into indistinct protuberances. The 2 to 5 (rarely up to 6) central spines are yellowish and up to 1.5 centimeters long. They are difficult to distinguish from the 20 to 40 short, thin, yellowish radial spines.

The straight or slightly curved, crooked, scarlet flowers are 4 to 9.5 inches long. The spherical fruits reach a diameter of 2 to 2.5 centimeters.[3]

Subspecies

There are two recognized subspecies:[2]

ImageNameDistribution
Loxanthocereus acanthurus subsp. acanthurusPeru
Loxanthocereus acanthurus subsp. pullatus (Rauh & Backeb.) OstolazaPeru

Distribution

Loxanthocereus acanthurus is distributed in the Peruvian regions of Ancash, Lima and Ica at altitudes of 300 to 2500 meters.

Taxonomy

The first description as Cereus acanthurus was in 1913 by Friedrich Karl Johann Vaupel. The specific epithet acanthurus is derived from the Greek words akanthos for 'thorn' and oura for 'tail' and refers to the dense spines on the shoots of the species. Other nomenclature synonyms are Borzicactus acanthurus (Vaupel) Britton and Rose (1920), Binghamia acanthura (Vaupel) Borg (1951), Cleistocactus acanthurus (Vaupel) DR Hunt (1987) and Echinopsis acanthura (Vaupel) Molinari (2015).

References
  1. Assessment), Jose Roque (Global Cactus (2011-05-05). "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  2. "Loxanthocereus acanthurus (Vaupel) Backeb". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  3. Anderson, Edward F.; Eggli, Urs (2005). Das grosse Kakteen-Lexikon (in German). p. 115. ISBN 3-8001-4573-1.
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