Mammillaria morganiana
Mammillaria morganiana, common name owl's eyes or owl-eye pincushion, is a cactus in the genus Mammillaria of the family Cactaceae. The epithet morganiana honors the U.S. optometrist Meredith Walter Morgan (1887-1957) of Richmond.
| Mammillaria morganiana | |
|---|---|
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| Mammiliaria morganiana at the botanical garden of Villa Durazzo-Pallavicini, Genova Pegli | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Cactaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cactoideae |
| Genus: | Mammillaria |
| Species: | M. morganiana |
| Binomial name | |
| Mammillaria morganiana Tiegel | |
Description
Mammillaria morganiana is a spherical or slightly cylindrical cactus, reaching a diameter of about 8 inches. This plant is pale blue-green, densely covered by woolly whitish tubercles. The 4-5 central spines are straight, about 1 foot long, while the 40 to 50 radial spines are very thin or hairlike and reach about 1.2 inches. The funnel-shaped flowers are creamy white to pink, with central red venation, about 1.5 inches long and wide. The red-brown fruits contain the seeds.
Distribution
This species is native to the Mexican state of Guanajuato.
Habitat
It can be found in semi-desert warm area at an elevation of 1,400–1,700 metres (4,600–5,600 ft) above sea level.
References
- Ulises Guzmán; Salvador Arias; Patricia Dávila (2003), Catálogo de cactáceas mexicanas, Mexiko-Stadt: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, p. 147, ISBN 970-9000-20-9
- Urs Eggli, Leonard E. Newton: Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg 2010, ISBN 978-3-642-05597-3, S. 158.
- Mammillarias.net