Sclerocactus pubispinus

(Engelmann) L. D. Benson

Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) 38: 103. 1966.

Common names: Great Basin fishhook cactus
Endemic
Basionym: Echinocactus pubispinus Engelmann Trans Acad. Sci. St. Louis 2: 199. 1863
Synonyms: Ferocactus pubispinus (Engelmann) N. P. Taylor
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 4. Treatment on page 203. Mentioned on page 198, 204.

Stems unbranched (2–3-branched), light green, depressed hemispheric to ovoid or cylindric, 4–15 × 3–15 cm; ribs (11–) 13–14, tubercles prominent on ribs. Spines not obscuring stems; radial spines (6–) 8–11 (–16) per areole, spreading, white or with dark tips, 4–35 × 0.3–1 mm; central spines (0–) 4 (–6) per areole; abaxial central spines 1 (–3) per areole, tan, brown, reddish, or black, usually hooked, terete to angled, 10–55 mm; lateral spines usually (0–) 2 (–4) per areole, white, tan, red or reddish-brown, usually hooked, except on some older areoles, 10–30 mm; adaxial spines 1 per areole, tipped white or dark, flattened, 5–25 (–60) × 0.5–1 (–2.2) mm. Flowers tubular, funnelform to campanulate, 2–4 × 2–4 cm; outer tepals with pink to yellowish-brown, greenish brown or reddish-brown midstripes and cream, yellow, pink, or reddish purple margins, usually oblanceolate, 10–20 × 4–8 mm, margins entire to irregularly toothed; inner tepals cream with yellow, greenish, reddish purple, lavender or brownish midstripes and lighter margins, oblanceolate to narrowly oblanceolate, 15–25 × 4–8 mm, margins entire to minutely toothed apically; filaments cream, yellow, green, red-violet, or pink; anthers yellow; styles minutely and sparsely papillate. Fruits dehiscent along 2–4 vertical slits, green or pink, barrel-shaped, 9–12 × 8–10 mm, dry; scales few, membranous, scarious-margined. Seeds black, 2.5–4 × 2–2.9 mm; testa with rounded papillae.


Phenology: Flowering late Apr–May.
Habitat: Light colored soils of limestone or dolostone origin, sagebrush and shadscale flats, pinyon-juniper woodlands
Elevation: 1400-2200 m

Discussion

Sclerocactus pubispinus is very similar to S. spinosior, and the two taxa have historically been confused. In addition to the features noted in the key, S. pubispinus generally has one dark red, robust, hooked central spine and two less stout, hooked central spines that are initially dark red and quickly fade to white, and flowers that are usually yellow to bronze. By contrast, S. spinosior generally has three stout, dark red central spines, the abaxial spine hooked, and flowers that are usually purple to cream. However, in juvenile (pre-reproductive) stages, the species are nearly indistinguishable.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"thin" is not a number. "broad" is not a number.

... more about "Sclerocactus pubispinus"
black +, reddish +, brown +  and tan +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (5.5 cm55 mm <br />0.055 m <br />) +
2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br /> (6 cm60 mm <br />0.06 m <br />) +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.22 cm2.2 mm <br />0.0022 m <br />) +
dark +  and tipped white +
5mm +  and 25mm +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
cushionlike +
spine-bearing +
circular to linear +
deciduous +  and persistent +
connected +
elliptic +  and pyriform +
0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
Kenneth D. Heil +  and J. Mark Porter +
(Engelmann) L. D. Benson +
hardened +
Echinocactus pubispinus +
triangular +
pink +  and purplish-pink or black +
subulate +  and acicular +
proliferating +
flattened +  and cylindric +
Great Basin fishhook cactus +
mucilaginous +
notched +
Nev. +  and Utah. +
1400-2200 m +
not separating +
pink +, red-violet +, green +, yellow +  and cream +
6 cm60 mm <br />0.06 m <br /> (7 cm70 mm <br />0.07 m <br />) +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br />) +
campanulate +  and tubular +
15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br /> (30 cm300 mm <br />0.3 m <br />) +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br />) +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br />) +
2.1 cm21 mm <br />0.021 m <br /> (2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br />) +
persistent +, long +  and deciduous +
0.9 cm9 mm <br />0.009 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
barrel--shaped +
0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
Light colored soils of limestone or dolostone origin, sagebrush and shadscale flats, pinyon-juniper woodlands +
1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br /> (2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br />) +
oblanceolate +  and narrowly oblanceolate +
reddish-brown +, red +, tan +  and white +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br />) +
deciduous +  and persistent +
rudimentary +
flat +  and terete +
nearly +  and microscopic +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
tuberculate +
fluted;spheric;depressed-spheric or club-shaped +
0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br /> (1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br />) +
entire +  and minutely toothed +
pink +  and yellowish-brown greenish brown or reddish-brown +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
deciduous +  and persistent +
Flowering late Apr–May. +
mucilaginous +
abscission +
ridgelike +  and nipple--shaped +
Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) +
greenish +  and white +
tuberculate +
scarious-margined +
triangular +
membranous +
arillate +  and strophiolate +
0.4mm;12mm +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
shiny +  and glossy +
obovoid;pyriform;obovoid;pyriform;lenticular-reniform;comma--shaped;spheric +
0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.29 cm2.9 mm <br />0.0029 m <br />) +
with dark tips +  and white +
curved +  and straight +
deciduous +  and persistent +
4mm +  and 35mm +
8 (?) +  and 11 (?) +
annulate-ridged +, hairlike +, daggerlike +, subulate +  and acicular +
hard +  and rigid +
0.03 cm0.3 mm <br />3.0e-4 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
decurrent +
15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br /> (20 cm200 mm <br />0.2 m <br />) +
light green +
4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br /> (15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br />) +
hemispheric +  and ovoid or cylindric +
succulent +
3cm;15cm +
creamy white +, yellow +, green +  and pink +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
papillate +
flat-topped +
tuberculate +
Ferocactus pubispinus +
adventitious +
tuberlike +
epipetric +  and epiphytic +
Sclerocactus pubispinus +
Sclerocactus +
species +
1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br /> (5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br />) +
lanceolate to oblanceolate +
0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
dull +  and glossy +
papillate +
coalescent +
distinct +
epiphytic;epiphytic;epiphytic +
barrel-shaped +  and spheric +