Opuntia tunoidea, eastern prickly pear cactus, beach

Gibbes, Proceedings of the Elliott Society of Natural History 1: 272, 1859

O. bentonii is similar to O. tunoidea

Original Description

What is Opuntia tunoidea?

Opuntia tunoidea is a prickly pear cactus that occurs along the coast of South Carolina and on adjacent islands. It has been confused over the years with O. dillenii (see Britton and Rose).

Details

Opuntia tunoidea is erect or semi-erect to approximately 0.5 or 1 m tall, and the plants have large, ovate to obovate cladodes. The yellow spines may 1-1.5 cm long and are tipped with brown.

Flower details are not known.

Ploidy is not known.

Other Notes

Gibbes reported the prickly pear suffered from cochineal scale (Dactylopius sp.), and we found plants infested with Cactoblastis cactorum. Interestingly this Opuntia has a general similarity to O. bentonii of the Gulf Coast. More studies are needed including comparisons of fruits, flowers, and overall morphology, etc. If the two taxa are the same, the correct name would be O. tunoidea, the name with precedence. O. tunoidea is unusual because it is a largish cactus that occurs in a northerly location on the Eastern Seaboard. It occurs infrequently though it is sometimes grown in local gardens.