About Cochemiea mazatlanensis (K.Schum. ex Gürke) D.Aquino & Dan.Sanchez
Cochemiea mazatlanensis is a cactus species characterized by short, columnar, grayish-green stems that branch from the base to form large clumps. Individual stems usually grow 4 to 15 cm long and 2 to 5 cm in diameter. The stem surface is covered in conical tubercles, each 3 to 4 mm long and arranged in a spiral pattern. Unlike some cacti, these tubercles do not produce milky sap. The axils, the spaces between the tubercles, are mostly bare, though they may sometimes hold one or two short bristles. An areole bearing spines sits on top of each tubercle. Each areole typically has 1 to 4 reddish-brown central spines that are 0.8 to 1.5 cm long, and some of these central spines may be hooked. Areoles also produce 12 to 18 straight white radial spines that measure 0.5 to 1 cm long. This cactus grows tubular carmine to purplish-pink flowers, which are approximately 3 to 4 cm long and 3 cm in diameter. The flowers are self-sterile, so they need pollen from a different individual plant to produce fruit. The fruits that develop are reddish-yellow or brown, and they contain black seeds. This species is native to the Mexican states of Colima, Jalisco, Michoacan, Nayarit, Sinaloa and southern Sonora, where it grows in desert hills, dunes, and dry scrub biomes between sea level and 500 meters elevation. It grows alongside a number of other cactus species, including Stenocereus kerberi, Echinocereus subinermis subsp. ochoterenae, Mammillaria beneckei, Mammillaria bocensis, Pachycereus pecten-aboriginum, Opuntia decumbens, Stenocereus thurberi, Stenocereus alamosensis, Pilosocereus purpusii, Pilosocereus alensis and Acanthocereus tetragonus.
