Opuntia basilaris

Beavertail cactus

Family: Cactaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Beavertail cactus is a California native shrub found in desert regions of southwestern California, growing in arid landscapes at elevations across desert and lower mountain zones. Flowering from April to May, this cactus produces striking pink-magenta flowers with deep magenta-red filaments, creating brilliant color against its blue-green segments. Growing with sprawling to ascending branches 7 to 40 centimeters tall, the plant forms dense, low-spreading clusters with minimal spines. Its thick, fleshy segments are green to bluish-green, covered in fine papillate hairs and featuring numerous tiny glochids instead of prominent spines. The fruit develops 2 to 4 centimeters long, initially green and purple, gradually becoming tan as it matures.

California counties: Imperial, San Bernardino, Kern, Riverside, Los Angeles, Tulare, Inyo, San Diego

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.