Ariocarpus agavoides

Ariocarpus agavoides (known commonly as the Magueyito or Tamaulipas living rock cactus)[1] is a species of cactus. It is endemic to Mexico. It grows in dry shrubland in rocky calcareous substrates.[1]

Ariocarpus agavoides
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Genus: Ariocarpus
Species:
A. agavoides
Binomial name
Ariocarpus agavoides
(Castañeda) E.F.Anderson

Description

This cactus is a small rosette-shaped succulent plant with short, stiff, dark green tubercles which closely resemble the leaves of a small Aloe or Haworthia. The areoles are very curiously placed halfway out on the upper surface of these pseudo-leaves.[3][4] The subglobose, flattened stem is greenish brown in color and up to 6 centimeters (2.25 inches) long by 8 centimeters in diameter. The rest of the plant is rootstock growing underground. The divergent, flaccid tubercles are flattened adaxially. The areoles at the tips of the tubercles are up to 1.2 centimeters long. Some individuals lack spines, while others have whitish spines up to a centimeter long.

Plants 5 to 8 years of age begin to grow magenta flowers up to 5 centimeters long. The pistils are a deep yellow and the stamens are white. The globose fruit is reddish in color and up to 2.2 centimeters long.

Habitat and distribution

A. agavoides has a narrow distribution in the rocky limestone hills at about 1200 meters in elevation in Tamaulipas and San Luis Potosí in Mexico.

Conservation actions

This cactus is listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and it is listed on CITES Appendix I.[1] It is illegal to collect the cactus in Mexico as it is protected by the state under the national list of species at risk of extinction, NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010. Despite the restriction, it still shows up in the trade market.[1]

References
  1. Fitz Maurice, W.A.; Sotomayor, M.; Gómez-Hinostrosa, C.; Fitz Maurice, B.; Hernández, H.M. (2013). "Ariocarpus agavoides". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T40956A2946887. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T40956A2946887.en. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  2. "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  3. Marshall, W. Taylor (1941). Cactaceae. Pasadena, California: Abbey Press. p. 164.
  4. Castaneda, M. (June 1941). "A New Cactus". Cactus and Succulent Journal. 13 (6): 98.
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