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Opuntia ficus-indica
Taxon
Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill.
Family / Order / Phylum
Cactaceae / Caryophyllales / Plantae
COMMON NAMES (English only)
Prickly-pear cacti
Cactus pear
Indian-fig prickly-pear
SYNONYMS
Cactus ficus-indica L.
Opuntia ficus-barbarica A. Berger
Opuntia megacantha Salm-Dyck
SHORT DESCRIPTION
This cactus can reach up to 2 m height. Succulent stems
are flat, oval and segmented. Flowers 5-6 cm in
diameter are orange. Fruits have the size and shape of a
fig and are purple. It has a CAM physiology with very
high water-use efficiency.
BIOLOGY/ECOLOGY
Dispersal mechanisms
Seeds are dispersed by vertebrates such as birds,
feral pigs and lizards that feed upon fruits. Many
seedlings are found beneath trees used as
Opuntia ficus-indica encroaching a shrub in southern
perching for birds.
Spain
Reproduction
Flowers are pollinated by insects. Seeds from
Photo: Montserrat Vilà
intact fruits and scats germinate after long rainy
periods and warm temperatures (21º approximately). Vegetative reproduction from cladodes (flattered succulent
segments stems) falling close to parental plants is also important for increasing local abundance.
Known predators/herbivores
Rodents are efficient seed predators. Livestock feed upon non-spiny varieties.
Resistant stages (seeds, spores etc.)
Seeds in the soil can remain viable for several years. Plants are resistant to high summer temperatures and strong
coastal winds.
HABITAT
Native (EUNIS code)
Semi-arid habitats
Habitat occupied in invaded range (EUNIS code)
B1: Coastal dune and sand habitats, B3:Rock cliffs, ledges and shores, including the supralittoral, F7: Spiny
Mediterranean heaths (phrygana, hedgehog-heaths and related coastal cliff vegetation) , F8: Thermo-Atlantic
xerophytic habitats, G3: Coniferous woodland, J6: Waste deposits.
Habitat requirements
Planted as a garden plant, it usually occurs close to buildings. It is mostly found in sunny, rocky and welldrained slopes. Rocks decrease diurnal variation in soil water availability and increase root growth and
branching. Sensitive to freezing temperatures below -6ºC and tolerant to high temperatures up to 65ºC. Soil
fertilization with N, P, Ca and K increases fruit production. Tolerant to moderate soil salinity.
DISTRIBUTION
Native Range
Tropical America from Mexico to Colombia
Known Introduced Range
Mediterranean Basin, especially in islands, Macaronesia Islands, Australia, Tropical and Southern Africa,
Western USA, Caribbean, temperate Asia, Seychelles and Hawaii.
Trend
There is increasing invasion in abandoned Mediterranean agricultural fields. Climatic models predict increasing
productivity with climate warming and rising atmospheric CO2.
MAP (European distribution)
Known in country
Legend
Known in CGRS square
Known in sea
INTRODUCTION PATHWAY
It was introduced by the Spanish conquerors between 1548 and 1570 for mass-rearing of the cochineal insect
Dactylopius coccus (Homoptera: Dactylophdae) for the commercial production of a red dye. It is a long-domesticated
cactus crop for fodder, stem (i.e. “nopal”) and fruit consumption. In Italy and Israel it is planted for fruit consumption. It
is also used as an ornamental, planted as wind protection fencing, land reclamation and rehabilitation, and erosion
control.
IMPACT
Ecosystem Impact
Its spatial occupation competes with native species recruitment.
Health and Social Impact
Famous for the injury the spines can cause to animals and humans. Invaded woodlands are misperceived as
typical Mediterranean landscapes.
Economic Impact
Invaded old-fields with spiny varieties interfere with sheep and cattle grazing. Organic acids accumulated during
night on young stems might cause diarrhoea to livestock.
MANAGEMENT
Prevention
Avoiding planting as an ornamental and dumping of plant debris in the wild.
Mechanical
Plants sprout vigorously after aerial biomass removal (i.e. fire, grazing, clipping). Successful regrowth can occur
from any plant fragment.
Chemical
Summer glyphosate injection into cladodes or areas were it had been cut has been proved to be effective.
Biological
In Hawaii, Australia and South Africa there has been successful biological control by the Hemyptera
Dactylopius opuntiae and to a lesser extend by the Lepidoptera Cactoblastis cactorum.
REFERENCES
DeFelice MS (2004) Prickly pear cactus, Opuntia spp. - A spine-tingling tale. Weed Tech. 18:869-877
Gimeno I, Vilà M (2002) Recruitment of two Opuntia species invading abandoned olives groves. Acta Oecologica
24:239-246
Vilà M, Burriel JA, Pino J et al (2003) Association between Opuntia spp. invasion and changes in land-cover in the
Mediterranean region. Global Change Biol 9:1234-1239
OTHER REFERENCES
Anneke DP, Moran VC (1978) Critical review of biological pest control in South Africa. 2. The prickly pear
Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Miller. J Entom Soc South Africa 41:161-188
Barbera G, Carimi F, Inglese P (1992) Past and present role of the indian-fig prickly-pear Opuntia ficus-indica (L.
Miller Cactaceae) in the agriculture of Sicily. Econ Bot 46:10-20
Benson L, Walkington DL (1965) The southern Californian prickly pears. Invasion adulteration and trial by fire.
Ann Miss Bot Gard 52:262-273
Brutsch I, Zimmermann H (1993) The prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica (Cactaceae) in South-Africa; utilization of
the naturalized weed and the cultivated plants. Econ Bot 47:154-162
Cuti M, Nobel PS (1994) Gas exchange and growth responses to elevated CO2 and light levels in the CAM species
Opuntia ficus-indica. Plant Cell Environ 17:935-944
Dean WRJ, Milton SJ (2000) Directed dispersal of Opuntia species in the Karoo South Africa: are crows the
responsible agents? J Arid Environ 45:305-314
Drennan PM, Nobel PS (1998) Root growth dependence on soil temperature for Opuntia ficus-indica: influences of
air temperature and a doubled CO2 concentration Func Ecol 12:959-964
García de Cortázar V, Nobel PS (1990) Worldwide environmental productivity indices and yield predictors for a
CAM plant Opuntia ficus-indica including effects of doubled CO2 levels. Agric Forest Met 49:261-279
Gersani M, Graham E, Nobel PS (1993) Growth responses of individual roots of Opuntia ficus-indica to salinity.
Plant Cell Environ 16:827-834
Galizzi FA, Felker P, González C, Gardier D (2004) Correlations between soil and cladode nutrient concentrations
and fruit yield and quality in cactus pears Opuntia ficus-indica in a traditional farm setting in Argentina. J Arid
Environ 59:115-132
Griffith MP (2004) The origins of an important cactus crop Opuntia ficus-indica (Cactaceae): New molecular
evidence. Amer J Bot 91:1915-1921
Inglese P, Barbera G, La Mantia L (1995) Research strategies for the improvement of cactus pear (Opuntia ficusindica) fruit quality and production. J Arid Environ 29:455-468
Le Houérou HN (1996) The role of cacti (Opuntia spp.) in erosion control land reclamation rehabilitation and
agricultural development in the Mediterranean Basin. J Arid Environ 33:135-159
Nobel PS (1988) Environmental biology of agaves and cacti. Cambridge University Press. London
Nobel P, Hartsock T (1984) Physiological responses of Opuntia ficus-indica to growth temperature. Physiol Plant
60:98-105
Nobel PS, Miller PM, Gram EA (1992) Influence of rocks on soil-temperature soil-water potential and rooting
patterns for desert succulents. Oecologia 92:90-96
Nobel PS, De la Barrera E 2003) Tolerances and acclimation to low and high temperatures for cladodes fruits and
roots of a widely cultivated cactus Opuntia ficus-indica. New Phytol 157:271-279
Nogales M, Hernández EC, Valdés F (1999) Seed dispersal by common ravens Corvus corax among island habitats
(Canarian Archipelago). Ecoscience 6:56-61
Monteiro A, Cheia VM, Vasconcelos T, Moreira I (2005) Management of the invasive species Opuntia stricta in a
Botanical Reserve in Portugal. Weed Res 45:193-201
Reyes-Agüero JA, Aguirre JR, Valiente-Banuet A (2006) Reproductive biology of Opuntia: A review. J. Arid
Environ 64:549-585
Samish YB, Ellern SJ (1975) Titratable acids in Opuntia ficus-indica L. J. Range Man 28:365-369
Vilà M, Gimeno I (2003) Seed predation of two alien Opuntia species in Mediterranean communities. Plant Ecol
167:1-8
Zimmermann HG, Moran VC (1991) Biological control of prickly pear Opuntia ficus-indica (Cactaceae) in South
Africa. Agric Ecos Environ 37:29-35
Author: Montserrat Vilà
Date Last Modified: October 4th, 2006