''Blossfeldia'' is a genus of cactus (family Cactaceae) containing only one species, ''Blossfeldia liliputiana'', native to South America in northwestern Argentina ( Jujuy, Salta, Tucumán, Catamarca and Mendoza Provinces) and southern

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

( Santa Cruz and

Potosí Potosí, known as Villa Imperial de Potosí in the colonial period, is the capital city and a municipality of the Department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world at a nominal . For centuries, it was the location o ...

Departments). It grows at 1,200–3,500 m altitude in the Andes, typically growing in rock crevices, and often close to waterfalls. It is of note as the smallest cactus species in the world, with a mature size of around 10–12 mm diameter. The flowers are white or rarely pink, 6–15 mm long and 5–7 mm diameter. The genus ''Blossfeldia'' has been divided into many separate species; however most morphological evidence supports that the genus is monotypic, and contains only ''Blossfeldia liliputiana''. The species is named after the fictional country of

Lilliput Lilliput may refer to: Geography * Lilliput (townland), a townland in County Westmeath, Ireland * Lilliput, Dorset, a district in the town of Poole in Dorset, United Kingdom * Lilliput Glacier, the smallest named glacier in the Sierra Nevada of C ...

, where all of the inhabitants are minute.

Taxonomy

The genus and species were first described in 1937 by

Erich Werdermann Erich Werdermann (2 March 1892 – 20 April 1959) was a German botanist. Born in Berlin, Erich Werdermann was the son of the landowner Carl Werdermann. He first studied in Jena, but then switched to Friedrich Wilhelm University (now called ...

after being discovered in northern Argentina by

Harry Blossfeld Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...

and

Oreste Marsoner ''Oreste'' ("Orestes", HWV A11, HG 48/102) is an opera by George Frideric Handel in three acts. The libretto was anonymously adapted from Giangualberto Barlocci’s ''L’Oreste'' (1723, Rome), which was in turn adapted from Euripides' ''Iph ...

. The genus name honours Blossfeld. ''Blossfeldia liliputiana'' has several features making it unique among cacti, including a very small number of

stoma In botany, a stoma (from Greek ''στόμα'', "mouth", plural "stomata"), also called a stomate (plural "stomates"), is a pore found in the epidermis of leaves, stems, and other organs, that controls the rate of gas exchange. The pore is bor ...

ta, the absence of a thickened cuticle, and hairy seeds with an

aril An aril (pronounced ), also called an arillus, is a specialized outgrowth from a seed that partly or completely covers the seed. An arillode or false aril is sometimes distinguished: whereas an aril grows from the attachment point of the see ...

. It is placed in the subfamily Cactoideae, and traditionally in the tribe Notocacteae. However,

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

studies have repeatedly shown that it is sister to the remaining members of the subfamily, and well removed from other genera placed in the Notocacteae: Recognizing the position of ''Blossfeldia'', Nyffeler and Eggli, in their 2010 classification of Cactaceae, placed it in a separate tribe, Blossfeldieae, within Cactoideae. Earlier, ''Blossfeldia'' was considered as a distinct genus within the tribe Notocacteae; it had even been placed in an entirely separate subfamily, Blossfeldioideae.

References

Bibliography

* Buxbaum F., "Gattung Blossfeldia", in Krainz H., ''Die Kakteen'', 1.11.1964 * Fechser H., "''Blossfeldia liliputana'' - The Tiniest Cactus", ''Cact. Succ. J. (US)'', 32 : 123-125, 1960 * John V., "''Strombocactus'', ''Blossfeldia'' a ''Aztekium''", ''Kaktusy'', 23 : 38-41, 1987 * Kilian G., "Beitrag zur Blossfeldia-Kultur", ''Kakt. und and. Succ.'', 13 : 82-83, 1962 * Köhler U., "Beobachtungen an Blossfeldien", ''Kakt. und and. Succ.'', 17 : 11-14, 1966; * "''Blossfeldia'' heute", ''Kakt. und and. Sukk.'', 32 : 132133, 1981 * Říha J., "''Blossfeldia liliputana'' Werdermann, ''Kaktusy'', 22 : 105-107, 1986 * * *http://llifle.com/Encyclopedia/CACTI/Family/Cactaceae/5701/Blossfeldia_liliputana

External links

Mauseth cacti research: ''Blossfeldia liliputana''Cacti Guide: ''Blossfeldia liliputana''
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q635852, from2=Q137117, from3=Q13521850 Cactoideae Monotypic Cactaceae genera Cacti of South America