"Ocotillo" redirects here. For the census-designated place, see Ocotillo, California.
Ocotillo
Ocotillo near Gila Bend, Arizona
Conservation status
Secure (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
Clade:
Tracheophytes
Clade:
Angiosperms
Clade:
Eudicots
Clade:
Asterids
Order:
Ericales
Family:
Fouquieriaceae
Genus:
Fouquieria
Species:
F. splendens
Binomial name
Fouquieria splendens
Engelm.
Synonyms[2]
Fouquieria spinosa Torr.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fouquieria splendens.
Fouquieria splendens (commonly known as ocotillo/ɒkəˈtiːjoʊ/ (Latin American Spanish:[okoˈtiʝo]), but also referred to as buggywhip, coachwhip, candlewood, slimwood, desert coral, Jacob's staff, Jacob cactus, and vine cactus) is a plant indigenous to the Mojave Desert, Sonoran Desert, Chihuahuan Desert and Colorado Desert in the Southwestern United States (southern California, southern Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas), and northern Mexico (as far south as Hidalgo and Guerrero).[3][4]
While semi-succulent and a desert plant, Ocotillo is more closely related to the tea plant and blueberries than to cactuses. For much of the year, the plant appears to be an arrangement of large spiny dead sticks, although closer examination reveals that the stems are partly green. With rainfall, the plant quickly becomes lush with small (2–4 cm), ovate leaves, which may remain for weeks or even months.
Individual stems may reach a diameter of 5 cm at the base, and the plant may grow to a height of 10 m (33 ft). The plant branches very heavily at its base, but above that, the branches are pole-like and rarely divide further. Specimens in cultivation may not exhibit any secondary branches. The leaf stalks harden into blunt spines, and new leaves sprout from the base of the spine.
The bright crimson flowers appear especially after rainfall in spring, summer, and occasionally fall. Flowers are clustered indeterminately at the tips of each mature stem. Individual flowers are mildly zygomorphic and are pollinated by hummingbirds and native carpenter bees.
^"NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
^The Plant List, Fouquieria splendens Engelm.
^Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
^McVaugh, R. 2001. Ochnaceae to Loasaceae. 3: 9–751. In R. McVaugh (ed.) Flora Novo-Galiciana. The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
and 24 Related for: Fouquieria splendens information
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fouquieriasplendens. Fouquieriasplendens (commonly known as ocotillo /ɒkəˈtiːjoʊ/ (Latin American Spanish: [okoˈtiʝo])...
Seri people identify three species of Fouquieria in their area of Mexico: jomjéeziz or xomjéeziz (F. splendens), jomjéeziz caacöl (F. diguetii, Baja California...
Xylocopa californica has been observed to rob nectar from ocotillo, Fouquieriasplendens, and are determined to be their primary pollinator in the Big Bend...
pectinatus are the dominant species in western Coahuila. Ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens), lechuguilla, and Yucca filifera are the most common species in...
short, white corollas that distinguish it from the nearby Fouquieriasplendens. Fouquieria shrevei is a shrub up to 3 m (9.8 ft) tall, branching repeatedly...
widespread. The saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea) and the ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens) are common on the bajadas, while many of the desert trees found...
Fraxinus species, Leucophyllum frutescens, Sapium biloculare and Fouquieriasplendens. The adult calleta silkmoth has a black body with a red collar and...
association species, but two are common though reduced in size: ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens) and saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea). The teddy bear cholla is also...
similar in appearance, it is not closely related to the ocotillo, Fouquieriasplendens of the Sonoran Deserts in North America. Young alluaudias form a...
(Canotia holacantha) are common, as well as multi-stemmed ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens). Shrubs found at higher elevations include whitethorn acacia (Acacia...
materials (traditionally loggerhead shells) on top of an ocotillo frame (Fouquieriasplendens). These shelters only house a single family and are suitable for...
the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts it grows alongside ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens), saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea), range ratany (Krameria parvifolia)...
multicostatus, Echinocereus polyacanthus, Echinocereus pectinatus, Fouquieriasplendens, and Cylindropuntia imbricata. Cochemiea guelzowiana at the Orto...
typical habitat is upland plains includes desert areas with ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens), cactus, creosote bush, mesquite, sagebrush and thorn scrub at altitudes...
gigantea) on warmer slopes above the valleys. Following rains, Ocatillo (Fouquieriasplendens) adds bright red flowers high up on the tips of multiple tall stems...
lupine (Lupinus spp.), prickly-pear (Opuntia spp.), and ocotillo (Fouquieriasplendens). Grasses found in brush mouse habitat include Lehmann lovegrass...
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