Opuntia cochenillifera

Hoxey, Paul & Gdaniec, Andrew, 2021, An evaluation of the Cactaceae of Barbados, Grenada, Saint Vincent, and The Grenadines, Phytotaxa 483 (1), pp. 25-74 : 70-72

12. Opuntia cochenillifera (L.) Miller (1768: unpaged) ≡ Cactus cochenillifer Linnaeus (1753: 468) ≡ Nopalea cochenillifera (L.) Salm-Dyck (1850: 64).

Lectotype (designated by Howard 1989: 411):— Dillenius (1732: Fig. 383 on Plate 297, image of the lectotype available at: https:// bibdigital.rjb.csic.es/viewer/11970/?offset=#page=327).

Notes:— Once included in the genus Nopalea , this group of hummingbird-pollinated species is now considered to belong in Opuntia once more, based on molecular data. This plant is very widely seen in the Caribbean region as an ornamental but was originally cultivated as a host for the cochineal insect and perhaps too as a medicinal plant (indicated to us by a local resident on Saint Vincent but without any specific details). We observed plants in cultivation on Saint Vincent, Grenada, inhabited islands of The Grenadines and Barbados.

Specimens examined:— BARBADOS. June 1901, Bovell 238 (NY). GRENADA . 30 March 1977, Howard 18333 (K, US) .