Melocactus caroli-linnaei is a cactus (a member of the family Cactaceae) found in Jamaica. When mature it is columnar, up to 1 m (3.3 ft) high. Like all species of Melocactus, it forms a "cephalium" when mature – a dense mass of areoles covered with wool and spines at the tip of the stem. Flowers are produced only from the cephalium.[2]
| Melocactus caroli-linnaei | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Cactaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cactoideae |
| Genus: | Melocactus |
| Species: | M. caroli-linnaei
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| Binomial name | |
| Melocactus caroli-linnaei N.P.Taylor
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Description edit
Melocactus caroli-linnaei grows with cylindrical green stems and reaches a size of up to 1 meter in height. The stem has ten to fifteen ribs or folds with areoles of ten to twelve spines each (sometimes more). The strong 3-5 centimeter, ten to twelve long spines are brownish-yellow in color. The very dense, long and strong bristles of cephalus hide their wool. The flowers are narrow, red and up to 4 centimeters long. The red, club-shaped fruits reach a length of up to 5 centimeters.
Description edit
Melocactus caroli-linnaei is widespread in Jamaica.
Taxonomy edit
The species was originally named Cactus melocactus by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 in Species Plantarum. The genus Cactus was later split and the pre-Linnaean name Melocactus was used for melocacti. The rules of botanical nomenclature forbid the repetition of a genus name and a specific epithet, so the name "Melocactus melocactus" is not allowed. In 1991, Nigel Taylor gave the species its current name, Melocactus caroli-linnaei.[2]
In 1922, Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose, in their work The Cactaceae, restricted the use of the name Cactus melocactus back to the Jamaican species only.
References edit
- ^ Kew), Nigel Taylor (RBG (2011-07-26). "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ a b Anderson, Edward F. (2001), The Cactus Family, Pentland, Oregon: Timber Press, ISBN 978-0-88192-498-5, pages=456–459
External links edit
Media related to Melocactus caroli-linnaei at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Melocactus caroli-linnaei at Wikispecies
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