Prickly Pear Cactus

Opuntia

Opuntia, commonly called the prickly pear cactus, is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae, many known for their flavorful fruit and showy flowers. Between 8,000 and 9,000 years ago, the Opuntia prickly pear cactus was domesticated in central Mexico. Cacti are native to the Americas, and are well adapted to arid climates; however, they are still vulnerable to alterations in precipitation and temperature driven by climate change. The plant has been introduced to Australia, southern Europe, the Middle East, and parts of Africa.

Pear

Pears are a genus of trees, Pyrus, in the family Rosaceae, that bear an edible apple-like fruit of the same name. Several species of pears are cultivated for their fruit and juices, while others are grown as ornamental flowering trees.

Cactus

A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 131 genera with some 1,866 known species. The word cactus derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek word κάκτος (káktos), a name originally used by Theophrastus for a spiny plant whose identity is now not certain. Cacti occur in a wide range of shapes and sizes. They are native to the Americas, ranging from Patagonia in the south to parts of western Canada in the north, with the exception of Rhipsalis baccifera, which is also found in Africa and Sri Lanka. Cacti are adapted to live in very dry environments, including the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth. Because of this, cacti show many adaptations to conserve water. For example, almost all cacti are succulents, meaning they have thickened, fleshy organs adapted to store water. Unlike many other succulents, the stem is the only part of most cacti where water storage takes place. Most species of cacti have lost true leaves, retaining only spines, which are highly modified leaves. As well as defending against herbivores, spines help prevent water loss by reducing air flow close to the cactus and providing some shade. In the absence of true leaves, cacti's enlarged stems carry out photosynthesis.

Shades of yellow

Varieties of the color yellow may differ in hue, chroma or lightness, or in two or three of these qualities. Variations in value are also called tints and shades, a tint being a yellow or other hue mixed with white, a shade being mixed with black. A large selection of these various colors is shown below.

prickly pear cactus

Noun

1. Alternative form of prickly pear (“various plants of the genus Opuntia”).