Beavertail Cactus - Opuntia basilaris

• 13 Jan, 2010
• 7 likes

This cactus is a type of Prickly Pear, which is Endangered in the USA, and it will often start blooming when it has only two pads. In the wild, its principal range is limited to the Mojave-Colorado desert. Like most cacti of the genus Opuntia, they have sharp spines as well as tiny barbed bristles called glochids that can be difficult to remove from the skin.