Melocactus caroli-linnaei
Melocactus caroli - linnaei is a species of the genus Melocactus in the cactus family ( Cactaceae ). The specific epithet caroli - linnaei honors the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus.
Description
Melocactus caroli - linnaei grows with green cylindrical stems and reaches stature heights of up to 1 meter. There are ten to 15 ribs available. The strong yellowish to brownish, ten to twelve, sometimes more, thorns are 3-5 inches long. The very dense, long outstanding, strong bristles of the cephalium cover the wool with the exception of Cephaliumspitze completely.
The narrow cylindrical red flowers are up to 4 inches long. The club-shaped red fruits reach a length of up to 5 centimeters.
Distribution and threat
Melocactus caroli - linnaei is common in Jamaica.
In the Red List of Threatened Species IUCN is the species as " Near Threatened (NT) ", ie out to be low risk.
System
A first description as Cactus melocactus was in 1753 by Linnaeus in Species Plantarum. He characterized the species as " CACTUS subrotundus quatuordecim - angularis ", Cactus something disk- round, 14 - square. When Heinrich Friedrich Link and Christoph Friedrich Otto 1827 new genus Melocactus described, they found Linnaeus' Cactus mammillaris as a synonym for Melocactus communis ( WTAiton ) Link & Otto, one of them accepted species of the genus. Melocactus communis in the sense of Link and Otto is a mixture of the two exclusively in the Caribbean widespread species Melocactus intortus and Melocactus caroli - linnaei and the generalized Melocactus curvispinus. Nathaniel Lord Britton 1922 limited and Joseph Nelson Rose in her work, The Cactaceae the use of the name Cactus melocactus again exclusively on the type occurring in Jamaica one.
Hermann Karsten presented the way in 1882 as Melocactus melocactus in the genus Melocactus. This Tautonym However, pursuant to Article 23.4 of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature inadmissible ( nomen illegitimum ). As part of its revision of the Central and South American Melokakteenarten Nigel Paul Taylor made in 1991 then to the new name Melocactus caroli - linnaei. Since the original type specimen was not preserved and in his opinion, the mentioned at Linnaeus pictures relate to goods not originating in Jamaica plants, he pointed the way to a aufbewahrtes in the Herbarium of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew specimen as neotype. However, this assignment is not without controversy. Roy Mottram struck prior to 1993, a figure from the third edition of Pitton de Tournefort Joseph Institutiones rei herbariae as Lektotypus, but this was not mentioned by Linnaeus. Paul V. Heath certain 1994 figure of Charles de l' Ecluse in 1605 to published Exoticorum to Lektotypus of Art