Silver Cholla (Cylindropuntia echinocarpa)

Silver Cholla or Cylindropuntia echinocarpa This cactus has spines similar to porcupine quills, with shingled, overlapping barbs. They attach very easily and almost appear to jump out at your clothes, flesh and hair. That is why it is often called jumping cactus. These barbs puncture flesh and catch in it more easily than non-barbed spines.
https://youtu.be/o94JO2SVD8E
Each spine has a silvery, papery sheath that loosely covers them.The theory of the sheeth is that it reflects sunlight, collects moisture and may even make it more difficult for animals to grip the spines with their mouth.
You may ask what animals could possibly eat these very spiney plants with needle sharp spines.

The silver cholla (Cylindropuntia echinocarpa) is a spiny cactus native to the arid regions of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Despite its spiny defense, it is consumed by several animals adapted to desert environments. Here are some animals known to eat silver cholla:

1. Desert Tortoises
Desert tortoises (e.g., Gopherus agassizii) eat the pads, flowers, and fruit of the silver cholla. They are adapted to handle the spines thanks to their tough mouths.
2. Rodents
Certain rodents, like packrats (Neotoma spp.) and kangaroo rats (Dipodomys spp.), may eat the fruits of the silver cholla. Packrats, in particular, are known to build nests using pieces of cactus and may nibble on them.
3. Birds
Birds such as the Gambel's quail (Callipepla gambelii) and other desert-dwelling birds may eat the seeds or fruits when available.
4. Ungulates
Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) may occasionally feed on the fruits or stems of silver cholla, especially during times of scarcity, when other food sources are limited.
5. Insects
Certain insects, like beetles and ants, may feed on the flowers or fruits of the cholla, though this is less common.

190 merged mages at 0.75X Cylindropuntia echinocarpa,Cylindropuntia exhinocarpa

Appearance

Silver cholla is a large, tree-like cactus which may exceed 2 m in height. Its stems and branches are made up of cylindrical green tubercles up to 1.5 cm wide and just under 1.0 cm tall. The fleshy tubercles each bear up to 20 long, straight, grayish or yellowish spines which may be nearly 4 cm long. The width of the tubercles is less than twice the length, which helps to distinguish it from buckhorn cholla, which occurs in a similar geographical distribution.

The flowers are usually greenish yellow, sometimes pinkish or brownish in color. The fruit is lumpy, spiny, and tan in color, with white seeds and a foul scent, reminiscent of rancid butter. It measures up to two centimeters long. Very few fruits reach maturity, and many immature fruits can often be seen lying on the ground below. This plant reproduces mainly through seeds, but its tubercles may break off and have a chance of producing new plants through asexual reproduction.

Cylindropuntia exhinocarpa or Silver Cholla Cylindropuntia echinocarpa,Cylindropuntia exhinocarpa,Geotagged,United States,Winter

Distribution

"Cylindropuntia echinocarpa" is native to the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico, where it can be found the Sonoran Desert, the Mojave Desert, and Colorado Desert in California and other states.

It commonly occurs in desert dry wash, creosote bush scrub, Joshua tree woodland, and pinyon-juniper woodland communities. It ranges from Mono County to Baja California Peninsula.

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Status: Least concern
EX	EW	CR	EN	VU	NT	LC

Taxonomy
Kingdom	Plantae
Division	Angiosperms
Class	Eudicots
Order	Caryophyllales
Family	Cactaceae
Genus	Cylindropuntia
Species	C. echinocarpa

Photographed in
United States of America