Cumulopuntia sphaerica

Botanical Description

Cumulopuntia sphaerica is a spiny, succulent, evergreen cactus. A small, fragile, prostrate to semierect, moderately branched plant with stems made up of globose segments around 25 - 60mm long; it forms a clump or loose cushion around 10 - 20cm tall[ 1915 Title Ethnobotany of the Andes Publication Author Bussmann R.W. & Paniagua-Zambrana N.Y. (Editors) Website https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28933-1 Publisher Springer Nature; Switzerland Year 2020 ISBN 978-3-030-28932-4 Description , 1987 Title The Cactus Family Publication Author Anderson E.F. Publisher Timber Press; Portland, Oregon Year 2001 ISBN 0-88192-498-9 Description An excellent work, giving botanical descriptions of virtually all the cacti, together with their range (but not their habitats) and sometimes also a photo. it also contains a long chapter detailing the many uses of cacti and another on cultivation.. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food. Cumulopuntia sphaerica has a wide distribution, high abundance, is present in several protected areas and is not affected by any threat. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].