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
editMelocactus 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
editMelocactus caroli-linnaei is widespread in Jamaica.
Taxonomy
editThe 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
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Media related to Melocactus caroli-linnaei at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Melocactus caroli-linnaei at Wikispecies
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