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Melocactus

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Melocactus
Melocactus bahiensis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Tribe: Cereeae
Subtribe: Cereinae
Genus: Melocactus
Link & Otto, nom. cons.[1]
Type species
Melocactus communis (now Melocactus intortus)
Species

See text.

Melocactus (melon cactus), also known as the Turk's head cactus, Turk's cap cactus, or Pope's head cactus, is a genus of cactus with about 30–40 species. They are native to the Caribbean, western Mexico through Central America to northern South America, with some species along the Andes down to southern Peru, and a concentration of species in northeastern Brazil.[2]

The first species was named by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, as Cactus melocactus. When the genus was separated from Cactus, the pre-Linnaean name Melocactus was used. Acting on the principle of priority, in 1922 Nathaniel Britton and Joseph Rose resurrected Linnaeus' Cactus. However, the 1905 Vienna botanical congress had already rejected the name Cactus, so this name was not available, and Melocactus Link & Otto is the correct genus name.[2]

Cactaceae melocactus
A Cactae melocactus depicted by Joaquim José Codina in the 18th century.

Mature plants are easily recognizable by their cephalium, a wool- and bristle-coated structure at the apex of the plant, containing a mass of areoles from which the small flowers grow.[2] The red, wool-coated cephalium, said to resemble the fez worn by Turkish men during the late Ottoman Empire, gives the plant one of its common names, Turk's cap cactus. It gives its name to the Turks Islands, part of the Turks and Caicos Islands.[3][4]

The fruits of Melocactus are pink and resemble the shape of pepper fruits. The fruits of this genus are edible, and in the wild they are frequently dispersed by lizards and birds.[5]

Species

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As of September 2023, Plants of the World Online accepted the following species:[1]

Image Scientific name Distribution
Melocactus acunae León Eastern Cuba
Melocactus andinus R.Gruber ex N.P.Taylor Venezuela
Melocactus azureus Buining & Brederoo Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus bahiensis (Britton & Rose) Luetzelb. Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus bellavistensis Rauh & Backeb. Ecuador and Peru
Melocactus braunii Esteves Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus brederooianus Buining Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus broadwayi (Britton & Rose) A.Berger Trinidad & Tobago
Melocactus caroli-linnaei N.P.Taylor Jamaica
Melocactus conoideus Buining & Brederoo Brazil
Melocactus curvispinus Pfeiff. Mexico, Central America, Colombia and western Venezuela
Melocactus deinacanthus Buining & Brederoo Brazil
Melocactus ernestii Vaupel Brazil (Bahia and Minas Gerais.)
Melocactus estevesii P.J.Braun Brazil (Roraima)
Melocactus evae Z.Mészáros Southeastern Cuba
Melocactus ferreophilus Buining & Brederoo Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus glaucescens Buining & Brederoo Brazil
Melocactus harlowii (Britton & Rose) Vaupel Cuba
Melocactus heimenii P.J.Braun & Gonç.Brito Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus holguinensis Areces Cuba
Melocactus inconcinnus Buining & Brederoo Northeastern Brazil
Melocactus intortus (Mill.) Urb. Bahamas to Turks-Caicos Islands, Puerto Rico to Lesser Antilles
Melocactus lagunaensis (Z.Mészáros) D.Barrios & Majure Southeastern Cuba
Melocactus lanssensianus P.J.Braun Brazil (Pernambuco)
Melocactus lemairei (Monv. ex Lem.) Miq. ex Lem. Hispaniola (NW. Haiti, W. & Southern Dominican Republic)
Melocactus levitestatus Buining & Brederoo Central & Eastern Brazil
Melocactus macracanthos (Salm-Dyck) Link & Otto Aruba to Netherlands Antilles
Melocactus matanzanus León Cuba
Melocactus mazelianus Ríha Eastern Colombia to Venezuela
Melocactus nagyi Z.Mészáros Southeastern Cuba
Melocactus neoviridescens Guiggi Northeastern Brazil
Melocactus neryi K.Schum. Venezuela to N. Brazil
Melocactus oreas Miq. Brazil
Melocactus pachyacanthus Buining & Brederoo Brazil
Melocactus paucispinus Heimen & R.J.Paul Bahia, Brazil
Melocactus pedernalensis M.M.Mejía & R.G.García Southeastern Haiti to southwestern Dominican Republic
Melocactus perezassoi Areces Central Cuba
Melocactus peruvianus Vaupel Peru
Melocactus praerupticola Areces Dominican Republic
Melocactus pruinosus Werderm. Brazil (Bahia, Minas Gerais)
Melocactus radoczii Z.Mészáros Southeastern Cuba
Melocactus salvadorensis Werderm. Brazil (Southern Bahia, Minas Gerais)
Melocactus santiagoensis D.Barrios & Majure Cuba
Melocactus schatzlii H.Till & R.Gruber Venezuela (Mérida)
Melocactus sergipensis N.P.Taylor & Meiado Brazil (Sergipe)
Melocactus smithii (Alexander) Buining ex G.D.Rowley Brazil
Melocactus stramineus Suringar Aruba
Melocactus violaceus Pfeiff. Northeastern Brazil (to Northeastern Minas Gerais)
Melocactus zehntneri (Britton & Rose) Luetzelb. Northeastern Brazil

Natural hybrids

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As of September 2023, Plants of the World Online accepted the following natural hybrids:[1]

Image Scientific name Distribution
Melocactus × albicephalus Buining & Brederoo Brazil (Bahia)
Melocactus × horridus Werderm. Brazil (Pernambuco)
Melocactus × trachycephalus Suringar Aruba

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Melocactus Link & Otto". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  2. ^ a b c Anderson, Edward F. (2001), The Cactus Family, Pentland, Oregon: Timber Press, ISBN 978-0-88192-498-5, pages=456–467
  3. ^ [1] Archived June 9, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Coastal Lake-Sediment Records of Prehistoric Hurricane Strikes in Honduras and Turks and Caicos Islands of the Caribbean Basin" (PDF). googleusercontent.com. Archived from the original on 2010-07-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ^ Thomson, George (2008). Melocactus: care and cultivation. p. 13.
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