Stats

Lifespan: Up to 20 yrs
Size: Medium
Diet: Photosynthetic
Biome: Coastal scrub
Range: North America
Movement: Sessile
Breeding: Seeds
Defense: Spines
Status: Uncommon

About

A sprawling cactus native to the coastal scrub of California and Baja California, its flattened paddle-shaped pads are covered with clusters of rigid spines and nearly invisible hair-like glochids that embed in skin far more stubbornly than the main spines. It blooms bright yellow flowers and bears edible red-purple fruits relished by birds and coyotes.

Life cycle

1.
seed
A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2.
sprout
A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3.
sapling
A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4.
mature
Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Genus: Opuntia
Species: Opuntia littoralis