Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Plants terrestrial to epiphytic, vine like, clambering, pendent.

Stems: Stems bluish green to purple, to 100–300 × 2.5–5 cm, ribs 4–6, acute, areoles 2–2.5 cm apart along ribs, 1.5–3.0 mm.

Roots: Roots frequently aerial and adventitious.

Leaves: Leaves modified into spines. Spines 1–5, short conic (acicular on immature stems), 1–3 mm; radial and central spines not distinguishable. Stipules absent.

Flowers: Flowers solitary. Flowers bisexual (perfect), 25–30 × 20 cm. Flower tube bearing numerous scales and long, white, hairlike spines. Outer tepals brown or purplish (or yellow?), narrow; inner tepals white, oblanceolate, apex acute. Stamens numerous. Ovary inferior, areoles of ovary bearing numerous scales and long, white, hairlike spines.

Fruit: Fruits red; spheric; 45–70 mm diam.; hidden by short (to 1 cm); yellowish; bristlelike spines and long; white hairlike spines. Seeds black; ovoid to reniform; shiny.

Ploidy: 2n = 22

Habitat: Disturbed coastal sites.

Elevation Range: 0–10 m.