''Lophophora'' () is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of spineless, button-like
cacti
A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...
. Its
native
Native may refer to:
People
* '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood
* '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth
* Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory
** Nat ...
range covers
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
through
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
to southwestern Mexico.
[ The species are extremely slow growing, sometimes taking up to thirty years to reach flowering age (at the size of about a golf ball, excluding the root) in the wild. Cultivated specimens grow considerably faster, usually taking between three and ten years to reach from seedling to mature flowering adult. The slow rate of reproduction and ]over-harvesting
Overexploitation, also called overharvesting or ecological overshoot, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to ...
by collectors render the species under threat in the wild.
Taxonomy
''Lophophora'' means "crest-bearing", referring to the tufts of trichome
Trichomes (; ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a plant ...
s that adorn each tubercle
In anatomy, a tubercle (literally 'small tuber', Latin for 'lump') is any round nodule, small eminence, or warty outgrowth found on external or internal organs of a plant or an animal.
In plants
A tubercle is generally a wart-like projectio ...
. ''Lophophora'' has been reported to have two species, '' L. diffusa'' and '' L. williamsii''. Another three species have been proposed: ''L. fricii'', ''L. koehresii'', and ''L. alberto-vojtechii''. Recent DNA sequencing
DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine. The ...
studies (Butterworth et al. 2002) have shown that ''L. diffusa'' and ''L. williamsii'' indeed are distinct species. DNA evidence from the alleged species ''L. fricii'' and ''L. koehresii'' would allow for more accurate classification.[C. A. Butterworth & J. H. Cota-Sanchez, & R. S. Wallace (2002), ”Molecular systematics of Tribe Cacteae (Cactaceae: Cactoideae): A phylogeny based on rpl16 intron sequence variation”, ''Systematic Botany'' ''27'' (2), 257-270.]
Species
Cultivation
''Lophophora'' species easily adapt to cultivation, requiring warm conditions and a free-draining substrate, and to be kept dry in winter.
References
* Edward F. Anderson, ''The Cactus Family
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
'' (Timber Press
Workman Publishing Company, Inc., is an American Publishing companies, publisher of Tradebook, trade books founded by Peter Workman. The company consists of Imprint (trade name), imprints Workman, Workman Children's, Workman Calendars, Artisan ...
, 2001) , pp. 396–397
* Edward F. Anderson, '' Peyote: The Divine Cactus'' (University of Arizona Press
The University of Arizona Press, a publishing house founded in 1959 as a department of the University of Arizona, is a nonprofit publisher of scholarly and regional books. As a delegate of the University of Arizona to the larger world, the Press p ...
; 2nd edition, 1996)
* Lyman Benson, '' Cacti of the United States and Canada'' (Stanford University Press
Stanford University Press (SUP) is the publishing house of Stanford University. It is one of the oldest academic presses in the United States and the first university press to be established on the West Coast. It is currently a member of the Ass ...
, 1983) , pp. 680–683
* John M. Coulter,
Preliminary revision of the North American species of Cactus, Anhalonium, and Lophophora
' (Contributions from the U. S. National Herbarium 3(2), 1894)
* Rudolf Grym, '' Rod/Die Gattung Lophophora'' (Vydavateľstvo Igor Dráb, 1997)
External links
Habitat photos of Lophophora
Notes on growing Lophophora
lophophora collection video
{{Authority control
Cactoideae genera