Agave lechuguilla

Agave lechuguilla is a wide-ranging perennial succulent, forb to shrub found in desert scrub, xerophyllous scrub, desert plains, and mountains, where it occurs up to the forest line. It occurs in south central North America from southern New Mexico and the Trans-Pecos region of western Texas, United States, south to northern and eastern Mexico in Chihuahua, Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, Durango, San Luis Potosí, Nuevo León, Guanajuato, Querétaro, Hidalgo, and Mexico State. It is the dominant agave in the Chihuahuan Desert, and populations are stable. There are over 450 occurrences, which are threatened by primarily by collection of plants, though also hybridization, and other threats in some places. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, abundant habitat, and broad habitat preferences, this species is considered secure.

Agave lechuguilla occurs in south central North America from southern New Mexico and the Trans-Pecos region of western Texas, United States, south to northern and eastern Mexico in Chihuahuan, Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, Durango, San Luis Potosí, Nuevo León, Guanajuato, Querétaro, Hidalgo, and Mexico State, where it is the dominant agave in the Chihuahuan Desert (FNA 2002, Hernández Sandoval et al. 2019, Wildflower Center 2026). Range extent was estimated to be over 750,000 square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1994 and 2025 (RARECAT 2025, GBIF 2026, iNaturalist 2026, SEINet 2026).

By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1994 and 2025, it is estimated that there are over 450 occurrences rangewide (RARECAT 2025, GBIF 2026, iNaturalist 2026, SEINet 2026). This species is occasionally cultivated, and iNatualist observations (>4000) were not evaluated for evidence of cultivation, though observations outside the native range were excluded (iNaturalist 2026).

Although threats are not widely documented, this species is threatened by primarily by collection of plants, though also hybridization (with A. havardiana, A. neomexicana, A. gracilipes, and A. ×glomeruliflora), and other threats in some places, though there is insufficient data, including anecdotal accounts, to understand scope and severity of threats for this species (FNA 2002, Hernández Sandoval 2019).