Opuntia polyacantha

Starvation prickly-pear, Starvation Prickly-Pear

Family: Cactaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Starvation prickly-pear is a native shrub found in arid regions of western North America, growing in desert and dry habitats at moderate elevations. Flowering from late spring to summer, this cactus produces spectacular yellow to pink-magenta flowers with white filaments and delicate green stigmas. Growing less than 0.5 meters tall with decumbent or ascending branches, the plant features distinctive elliptic to obovate green segments covered in white and yellow-brown spines. Its segments are smooth and glabrous, with spines arranged in complex patterns - shorter white reflexed spines surrounding longer, flatter white spines with yellow-brown bases. The fruit develops green with a reddish tint, eventually drying to a tan color and containing small seeds 5 to 6.5 millimeters long.

California counties: Inyo, San Bernardino, Mono, Riverside

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