Copiapoa is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae, from the dry coastal deserts, particularly the Atacama Desert, of northern Chile.

Copiapoa
Copiapoa humilis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Tribe: Notocacteae
Genus: Copiapoa
Britton & Rose
Type species
Copiapoa marginata 

Description edit

It comprises 32 morphologically defined species and 5 heterotypic subspecies.[1] The species in the genus Copiapoa forms dense cushions of hundreds of large individual plants or produce only solitary plants. The shoots are spherical or elongated-cylindrical. The spines, which are usually present, are variably shaped. On the apex, the species are usually densely woolly-haired. The ribs are clearly developed. These species vary in form from spherical to slightly columnar and in color from a brownish to blue-green body. They have warty ribs and spiny areoles, and they usually produce tubular yellow flowers which grow from woolly crowns on the apex in summer. They are bell- to funnel-shaped and open during the day. The short, circular pericarp is glabrous. The flower tube is short and broad. The small, smooth fruits contain large, shiny black seeds.[2]

Taxonomy edit

Pilocopiapoa F.Ritter has been brought into synonymy with this genus. Some authorities also include here the genus Blossfeldia.

Species edit

Species of the genus Copiapoa according to Plants of the World Online As of January 2023[3] separated according to sections.[4][5]

Subgenus Image Scientific name Distribution
Pilocopiapoa (F.Ritter) Doweld—Ritter   Copiapoa solaris (F.Ritter) F.Ritter Chile (Antofagasta to NW. Atacama)
  Copiapoa australis (Hoxey) Helmut Walter & Larridon Chile (Atacama)
Unplaced   Copiapoa laui Diers Chile (Antofagasta to NW. Atacama)
Mammillopoa Helmut Walter & Larridon   Copiapoa humilis (Phil.) Hutchison Chile (Antofagasta).
Copiapoa sect. Cinerei Copiapoa ahremephiana N.P.Taylor & G.J.Charles Chile (W. & SW. Antofagasta).
  Copiapoa gigantea Backeb. Chile (Antofagasta to N. Atacama)
  Copiapoa cinerea (Phil.) Britton & Rose Chile (Antofagasta to Atacama)
Copiapoa sect. Copiapoa Copiapoa angustiflora Helmut Walter, G.J.Charles & Mächler Chile (SW. Antofagasta)
Copiapoa aphanes Mächler & Helmut Walter Chile (SW. Antofagasta)
  Copiapoa atacamensis Middled. Chile (Antofagasta to NW. Atacama)
  Copiapoa calderana F.Ritter Chile (Antofagasta to Atacama)
  Copiapoa cinerascens (Salm-Dyck) Britton & Rose Chile (SW. Antofagasta to NW. Atacama).
Copiapoa decorticans N.P.Taylor & G.J.Charles Chile (Antofagasta to Atacama)
Copiapoa desertorum F.Ritter Chile (Antofagasta to NW. Atacama)
  Copiapoa esmeraldana F.Ritter Chile (SW. Antofagasta to NW. Atacama)
  Copiapoa grandiflora F.Ritter Chile (SW. Antofagasta to NW. Atacama).
  Copiapoa hypogaea F.Ritter Chile (SW. Antofagasta to NW. Atacama).
Copiapoa leonensis I.Schaub & Keim Chile (Atacama).
Copiapoa longispina F.Ritter Chile (Atacama)
  Copiapoa longistaminea F.Ritter Chile.
  Copiapoa marginata (Salm-Dyck) Britton & Rose Chile (SW. Atacama to NW. Coquimbo)
  Copiapoa megarhiza Britton & Rose Chile (Atacama).
  Copiapoa mollicula F.Ritter Chile (Atacama to NW. Coquimbo).
  Copiapoa montana F.Ritter Chile (SW. Antofagasta)
  Copiapoa rupestris F.Ritter Chile (Antofagasta).
  Copiapoa serpentisulcata F.Ritter Chile (SW. Antofaga to NW. Atacama).
  Copiapoa taltalensis (Werderm.) Looser Chile (SW. Antofagasta).
Echinopoa Doweld   Copiapoa coquimbana (Karw. ex Rümpler) Britton & Rose Chile (SW. Antofagasta to Coquimbo)
Copiapoa corralensis I.Schaub & Keim Chile (Atacama)
  Copiapoa echinoides (Lem. ex Salm-Dyck) Britton & Rose Chile (Atacama to NW. Coquimbo).
Copiapoa fiedleriana (K.Schum.) Backeb. Chile (SW. Antofagasta to NW. Coquimbo)
Copiapoa fusca I.Schaub & Keim Chile (Atacama).
Copiapoa malletiana (Cels ex Salm-Dyck) Backeb. Chile (Atacama)
Copiapoa pendulina F.Ritter Chile (Coquimbo)
Copiapoa schulziana I.Schaub & Keim Chile (Atacama).

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Larridon, Isabel; Walter, Helmut E.; Guerrero, Pablo C.; Duarte, Milén; Cisternas, Mauricio A.; Hernández, Carol Peña; Bauters, Kenneth; Asselman, Pieter; Goetghebeur, Paul; Samain, Marie-Stéphanie (2015). "An integrative approach to understanding the evolution and diversity of Copiapoa(Cactaceae), a threatened endemic Chilean genus from the Atacama Desert". American Journal of Botany. 102 (9): 1506–1520. doi:10.3732/ajb.1500168. PMID 26373974.
  2. ^ Brickell, Christopher, ed. (2008). The Royal Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 302. ISBN 9781405332965.
  3. ^ "Copiapoa Britton & Rose - Plants of the World Online". Plants of the World Online. 2022-07-04. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
  4. ^ Larridon, Isabel; Walter, Helmut E.; Guerrero, Pablo C.; Duarte, Milén; Cisternas, Mauricio A.; Hernández, Carol Peña; Bauters, Kenneth; Asselman, Pieter; Goetghebeur, Paul; Samain, Marie-Stéphanie (2015). "An integrative approach to understanding the evolution and diversity ofCopiapoa(Cactaceae), a threatened endemic Chilean genus from the Atacama Desert". American Journal of Botany. 102 (9). Wiley: 1506–1520. doi:10.3732/ajb.1500168. ISSN 0002-9122. PMID 26373974.
  5. ^ Kattermann, F (2018). "Molecular Study of the Genus Copiapoa (Cactaceae) Part I". Cactus and Succulent Journal. 90 (94): 284–294. doi:10.2985/015.090.0408 (inactive 31 January 2024).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2024 (link)

External links edit