Saguaro (Carnegiea Gigantea) Densities and Reproduction Over the Northern Sonoran Desert

Casual observations suggest that saguaro populations are densest in southeastern Arizona, although data have not been collected and no study has been done to address this topic. In addition, the topic of reproductive density has similarly never been addressed. Saguaro reproductive output is directly related to the number of adult individuals and the number of branches in the area. Thirty saguaro populations over their U.S. range were sampled to consider two variables: population density and reproductive stem density. Stepwise regression using climate and vegetation (e.g., availability of nurse plants) to predict density yielded tree + Ambrosia cover and maximum July precipitation. Nurse cover, however, is also influenced by summer rain. The partial correlation results suggest that high saguaro densities are linked with high quality nurse cover (i.e., not Larrea tridentata) in addition to summer rainfall. Total cover and mean annual precipitation are the best predictors of reproductive stem density. Mean annual precipitation may be a good predictor of reproductive stem density, because population density is linked with summer rain while branching is linked with winter rain. The plots were also divided into climatic regions. One-way ANOVA shows that the northeast (high winter precipitation) and west (dry) have lower saguaro densities than the southeast (high summer precipitation), while the northeast and southeast both have very high reproductive stem densities relative to the west. The warmer west is less susceptible to periodic freezing mortality, while previous work has shown that the southeast generally regenerates more successfully. Thus in the colder northeast, which is also outside of the primary summer rain and best nurse plant belt, low density populations seem to be maintained only with high reproductive density.     

Reproductive biology of Opuntia: A review

A review of the reproductive biology of fleshy-fruited species of Opuntia sensu stricto was conducted. Among Cactaceae, Opuntia is the most diverse and widely distributed genus in the Americas. The genus is strongly associated with bee pollination and coevolution with at least two bee genera is suggested. Fruits and vegetative parts, such as spiny cladodes, are closely linked with seed dispersal and highly efficient vegetative dissemination by animals. Vegetative multiplication appears to be more efficient than sexual reproduction for plant recruitment. Both sexual reproduction and plant multiplication seem to have contributed to the ecological and evolutionary success of the genus, but empirical evidence is lacking.     

Vivipary in the cactus family: A reply to Ortega-Baes’ et al. evaluation of 25 species from northwestern Argentina

This is a reply to Ortega-Baes’ et al. (2010) survey of 25 Argentinean species of cacti evaluated for vivipary. We argue that the sample size and geographic area of the species investigated is insufficient to totally exclude the putative commonness of this condition in the Cactaceae. We indicate possible reasons why they did not find viviparous fruits in their survey. Failure to detect vivipary in cacti of NW Argentina may be correlated with limited taxonomic sampling and geographic region in addition to intrinsic and extrinsic plant factors, including different stages of fruit and seed development and genetic, ecological, and edaphic aspects, which, individually or in concert, control precocious germination. We uphold that viviparity is putatively frequent in this family and list 16 new cases for a total of 53 viviparous cacti, which make up ca. 4% incidence of viviparism in the Cactaceae, a substantially higher percentage than most angiosperm families exhibiting this condition. The Cactaceae ranks fourth in frequency of viviparity after the aquatic families of mangroves and seagrasses. We suggest the re-evaluation of cactus vivipary, primarily as a reproductive adaptation to changing environments and physiological stress with a secondary role as a reproductive strategy with limited offspring dispersal/survival and fitness advantages.     

Latitudinal and altitudinal patterns of the endemic cacti from the Atacama desert to Mediterranean Chile

In this study we describe the biogeographic patterns of the endemic cacti from the Atacama Desert to the Mediterranean area of Chile. Our goals were: (1) to identify areas of high endemism, (2) to test Rapoport’s rule, (3) to test the geometric constraints hypothesis, (4) to explore temperature and precipitation as explanatory variables of species richness. We used a list of 72 species of cacti, ranging from 18° to 36° S and from 0 to 4500 m.a.s.l. A Bayesian analysis of Endemicity (BAE) was used to evaluate hierarchical relationships of endemism between different latitudinal bands. Rapoport’s rule was evaluated by examining the relationships between latitudinal/altitudinal mid-point, latitudinal/altitudinal range extent and species richness. The geometric constraints hypothesis was tested by examining the existence of mid-domain effect. The BAE indicated two areas of endemism: (1) the northern area between 18° S and 26° S, and (2) the southern area between 27° S and 36° S. The shape of the latitudinal gradient is non-linear, supporting the geometric constraints hypothesis. Altitudinal patterns, however, support Rapoport’s rule; a peak of endemism was found at low altitudes. The explanatory variables were elevation, minimum temperature of the coldest month, mean temperature of wettest quarter and annual precipitation.     

Extraction and characterization of mucilage in Opuntia spp.

The cactus pear (Opuntia ficus indica) mucilage is an interesting ingredient for the food industry because of its viscosity properties. We studied the conditions for the extraction and precipitation of the plants mucilage. Extraction conditions were: pad/water ratios (1:51:7), extraction temperature, (40±2 and 16±2 °C) and extraction time (4, 8 and 16 h). For the precipitation of the mucilage two types of alcohol (ethanol and isopropyl alcohol) and two water/alcohol ratios (1:3 and 1:4) were used.No differences were found in any of the measured variables among the different extraction or precipitation methods.The average mucilage yield after drying was 1.48% based on fresh weight (f.w.) and 19.4% based on dry weight (d.w.).The dried mucilage had in average 5.6% moisture; 7.3% protein; 37.3% ash; 1.14% nitrogen; 9.86% calcium and 1.55% of potassium. The colour analysis showed a high L* value and the chromatic co-ordinates were in the yellow-greenish spectrum.The use of isopropyl alcohol is recommended in ratio 1:3, since its commercial value is lower in comparison with ethanol.