Echinocereus scopulorum

Echinocereus scopulorum is a species of cactus native to Mexico.

Description

Echinocereus scopulorum grows as a solitary cactus with cylindrical shoots ranging from long and up to in diameter, concealed by spines. It has 13 to 15 ribs, with three to ten central spines shorter than the approximately 20 peripheral spines, which are whitish with darker tips and long.
The fragrant, funnel-shaped flowers are light pink to magenta with a white throat, appearing near the tips of the shoots. They are centimeters long and up to in diameter. The spherical to egg-shaped fruits are dark green with white pulp, dry when ripe, but do not crack open.

Distribution

Echinocereus scopulorum is found along the coastal xeric scrublands of the Mexican state of Sonora, on Isla Tiburón, and in the states of Sinaloa and Nayarit. It lives in the Sonoran desert, on rocky soils at elevations of.

Taxonomy

First described by Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose in 1922 in The Cactaceae, the species name scopulorum, meaning 'mountain peak', 'cliff', or 'rock' in Latin, refers to its preferred habitat.