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Opuntia aurea

E.M. Baxter

Golden Prickly-pear

G3Vulnerable Found in 9 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G3VulnerableGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.153609
Element CodePDCAC0D300
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
IUCNLeast concern
CITESAppendix II
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderCaryophyllales
FamilyCactaceae
GenusOpuntia
Synonyms
Opuntia basilaris var. aurea(E.M. Baxter) W.T. Marsh.Opuntia erinacea var. aurea(E.M. Baxter) Welsh
Other Common Names
golden pricklypear (EN)
Concept Reference
Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
Taxonomic Comments
Recognized as a full species by Kartesz (1999); has also been treated as a variety of Opuntia basilaris (e.g., by Kartesz, 1994) or as a variety of O. erinacea (as by Welsh).
Conservation Status
Rank MethodLegacy Rank calculation - Excel v3.1x
Review Date2018-05-22
Change Date1991-01-24
Edition Date2018-05-22
Edition AuthorsLAMBERT, A. (1988), rev. Treher (2018)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent5000-200,000 square km (about 2000-80,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences21 - 80
Rank Reasons
Opuntia aurea is endemic to the U.S.A. and restricted to two states, Utah and Arizona. Field work is needed to determine the exact number of occurrences but there are likely more than 30. The species is said to be common where it does occur and threats appear to be low but more information is needed to determine that.
Range Extent Comments
Opuntia aurea is endemic to the U.S.A. but restricted to two states, Utah and Arizona. In Utah, it occurs in southeastern Washington County and in southern Kane County. In Arizona, it occurs along the Utah border north of Pipe Spring in Mohave County.
Occurrences Comments
The exact number of occurrences are unknown but there are probably a minimum of 40 based on herbarium specimens collected after 1998 (SEINet 2018)
Threat Impact Comments
Most cacti are subject to horticultural collecting but this species is not known to be cultivated. There is some mining in the area where it occurs including surface mining for gypsum - but not on the red sands where this species occurs. Cattle grazing is present at some occurrences, but cattle does not threaten to the species.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

This species occurs on sand or sandy soils of flats, dunes, and valleys in woodland areas at 1,500-1,800 m elevation.

Reproduction

All Opuntias produce dry and fleshy fruits that are dispersed by animals and many Opuntias are known to be self-dispersed, in addition (Valiente-Banuet and Godinez-Alvarez 2002).
Terrestrial Habitats
Forest/WoodlandPlaya/salt flatSand/dune
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN3
ProvinceRankNative
UtahS2Yes
ArizonaS3Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
2 - Agriculture & aquacultureUnknownUnknownHigh (continuing)
2.3 - Livestock farming & ranchingUnknownUnknownHigh (continuing)
3 - Energy production & miningUnknownUnknownHigh (continuing)
3.2 - Mining & quarryingUnknownUnknownHigh (continuing)
5 - Biological resource useNegligible (<1%)Negligible or <1% pop. declineHigh (continuing)
5.2 - Gathering terrestrial plantsNegligible (<1%)Negligible or <1% pop. declineHigh (continuing)
5.2.1 - Intentional use (species being assessed is the target)Negligible (<1%)Negligible or <1% pop. declineHigh (continuing)

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Plant Characteristics
Economic Value (Genus)Yes
Roadless Areas (9)
Utah (9)
AreaForestAcres
Bull ValleyDixie National Forest10,911
Casto BluffDixie National Forest87,466
Cave CanyonDixie National Forest5,657
Cedar BenchDixie National Forest8,915
CottonwoodDixie National Forest6,754
FishhookDixie National Forest12,959
Moody WashDixie National Forest31,835
Pine Valley MountainsDixie National Forest57,673
Stoddard MountainDixie National Forest13,165
References (6)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2003b. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 4, Magnoliophyta: Caryophyllidae, part 1. Oxford University Press, New York. xxiv + 559 pp.
  2. Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
  3. Pinkava, D.J., M. Baker, and R. Puente. 2017. <i>Opuntia aurea</i> (amended version of 2013 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017: e.T151954A121574153. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T151954A121574153.en (accessed 22 May 2018).
  4. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2018. Collections Databases. Online. Available: http://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/ (accessed 2018).
  5. USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, PLANTS Database [USDA PLANTS]. http://plants.usda.gov/. Accessed 2015.
  6. Valiente-Banuet, A., and H. Godinez-Alvarez. 2002. Population and Community Ecology. Pages 91-108. in: P. Nobel, editor. Cacti: Biology and Uses. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA.