Cylindropuntia is a genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of cacti (family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 Cactaceae), containing the chollas. They were formerly treated as a subgenus

Subgenus

In biology, a subgenus is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.In zoology, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the generic name and the specific epithet: e.g. the Tiger Cowry of the Indo-Pacific, Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, which...

 of Opuntia

Opuntia

Opuntia, also known as nopales or paddle cactus , is a genus in the cactus family, Cactaceae.Currently, only prickly pears are included in this genus of about 200 species distributed throughout most of the Americas. Chollas are now separated into the genus Cylindropuntia, which some still consider...

but have now been separated based on their cylindrical stems ('Opuntia' have flattened stems) and the presence of papery epidermal sheaths on the spines ('Opuntia' have no sheaths). A few species of mat or clump forming opuntioid cacti are currently placed in the genus Grusonia.

There are about 35 species of Cylindropuntia native to the southwest and south central United States, Mexico and the West Indies, The Flora of North America recognizes 22 species. Some species have been introduced to South America (Chile, Ecuador, Peru) and South Africa.

Selected species

• Cylindropuntia abyssi
• Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa
  Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa
  Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa , commonly referred to as Buckhorn Cholla, is a cactus native to California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona in the United States.-Subspecies and varieties:There are a number of recognized subspecies and varieties as follows:...
  
  - buckhorn cholla
• Cylindropuntia alcahes
• Cylindropuntia arbuscula - pencil cholla
• Cylindropuntia bigelovii - teddy-bear cholla
• Cylindropuntia californica
  Cylindropuntia californica
  Cylindropuntia californica is a species of cactus known by the common names California cholla, snake cholla, and cane cholla.-Distribution:...
  
  
• Cylindropuntia caribaea
• Cylindropuntia cholla
• Cylindropuntia cylindrica
• Cylindropuntia echinocarpa
  Cylindropuntia echinocarpa
  Cylindropuntia echinocarpa is a species of cactus known by the common names Silver cholla, Golden cholla, and Wiggins' cholla.-Distribution:...
  
  - silver cholla
• Cylindropuntia fulgida - jumping cholla or hanging chain cholla
• Cylindropuntia imbricata - cane cholla, tree cholla
• Cylindropuntia kelvinensis
• Cylindropuntia kleiniae
• Cylindropuntia leptocaulis
  Cylindropuntia leptocaulis
  Cylindropuntia leptocaulis, Desert Christmas cactus, Desert Christmas Cholla, and Tasajillo, is a cactus.-Distribution:...
  
  - desert Christmas cactus, Christmas Cholla, tasajillo
• Cylindropuntia mortolensis
• Cylindropuntia munzii
• Cylindropuntia prolifera
  Cylindropuntia prolifera
  Cylindropuntia prolifera, known by the common name Coastal cholla, is a species of cactus.-Description:Cylindropuntia prolifera is a mostly erect, treelike cactus which can approach 3 meters in maximum height. The gray-green segments are narrow and cylindrical, surfaced in fleshy tubercles bearing...
  
  
• Cylindropuntia ramosissima
  Cylindropuntia ramosissima
  Cylindropuntia ramosissima is a species of cactus known by the common names diamond cholla and branched pencil cholla.-Distribution:...
  
  - diamond cholla
• Cylindropuntia rosea
  Cylindropuntia rosea
  Cylindropuntia rosea, the Hudson Pear, is a cactus Australian botanists attribute to being native to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and Northwestern Mexico. The plant is an invasive species in Australia. Neither this species name, C. rosea, nor C...
  
  
• Cylindropuntia schottii - dog cholla
• Cylindropuntia spinosior - Tasajo cholla
• Cylindropuntia stanlyi - devil cholla
• Cylindropuntia tunicata
• Cylindropuntia × tetracantha
• Cylindropuntia versicolor - staghorn cholla
• Cylindropuntia × vivipara
• Cylindropuntia whipplei - rat-tail chollahttp://www.desert-tropicals.com/Plants/Cactaceae/Opuntia.html
• Cylindropuntia wolfii
  Cylindropuntia wolfii
  Cylindropuntia wolfii is a species of cactus known by the common name Wolf's cholla.-Distribution:Cylindropuntia wolfii is native to Sonoran Desert, in the Colorado Desert of Southern California, and in Baja California, Mexico. It grows in dry, rocky desert habitat.-Description:Cylindropuntia...