Golden Prickly Pear

Opuntia aurea Baxter. October 9, 1981, Zion National Park, Kolob Road, Washington Co. UtahHighly restricted endemic in southern Utah (western Kane and Wash. Cos; adjoining AZ) but relatively abundant in its limited range. Synonyms include O. basilaris var. aurea and Opuntia erinacea var. aurea . Has been greatly confused by Utah taxonomists/botanists with Opuntia macrorhiza (which does not seem to be present in a true form in the area at all, and the abundancy referred to within that species actually appears to relate to O. aurea and its hybrids) and Opuntia basilaris, and with spineless morphotypes of O. polyacantha. Hybridizes with other species including O. polyacantha and O. phaeacantha. In its pure form, is smaller than the above, and has yellow flowers. Larger plants with pink flowers and that typically have some pads with terminal spines are O. aurea x O. polyacantha hybrids.

Description: Golden pricklypear (Opuntia aurea syn. Opuntia erinacea var. aurea), Cactus family (Cactaceae). Around the East Entrance of the Zion Nat. Park, Utah. Date: 23 April 2016, 17:39. Source: 2016.04.23_17.39.23_IMG_4993. Author: Andrey Zharkikh from Salt Lake City, USA.

Description: Golden pricklypear (Opuntia aurea), Cactus family (Cactaceae). Johnson Lakes Canyon, Kane County, Utah. Date: 27 May 2016, 10:55. Source: 2016.05.27_10.55.48_IMG_5776. Author: Andrey Zharkikh from Salt Lake City, USA.