Opuntia angustata — *Opuntia* *angustata*

Engelmann & J. M. Bigelow, Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 3: 292, 1856/1857

Syntype; Painting (Smithsonian Institution); Holotype (Opuntia magnarenensis); Lectotype (Opuntia magnarenensis); Drawing (The Botany of the Expedition, 1856, plate VII)

Original Citation (O. angustata)

Original Citation (O. magnarenensis)

What is Opuntia angustata?

Opuntia angustata is a poorly understood or documented prickly pear cactus reported from northwestern Arizona and adjacent portions of Nevada and California. It may be synonymous with O. magnarensis. The citation above for O. angustata describes a plant with more narrow pads, and the syntype has only fragmentary material.

Details

The photos presented here represent our concept of this O. angustata. O. angustata is larger and woodier/stiffer than O. phaeacantha but is smaller than O. engelmannii to which it seems related. Flowers are yellow. Spines are often long and chalky white. There are typically 2-4 spines per aerole that sweep downward.

Ploidy is unknown.

Other Notes

Britton and Rose reported that the true type specimen for this Opuntia is from the bottoms of the Bill Williams River in AZ. Engelmann and Bigelow described a prickly pear cactus that had narrow cladodes. O. angustata, as we interpret it, and O. riparia are similar, and may, in fact, represent the same taxon. O. riparia occurs further south (near Tucson, AZ and south). Also, O. angustata may be the same as O. magnarenenesis described by Griffiths from Owens, AZ (near Wikieup, AZ), which does not have especially narrow cladodes.