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Grand Canyon National ParkBeavertail Pricklypear - Opuntia basilaris Engelm
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Grand Canyon National Park
Cacti / Desert Succulents
 
PRICKLY PEAR ON LEDGE
Prickly Pear on Ledge, NPS Photo
Cacti are flowering plants with green, fleshy stems which have a waxy coat to retain water. They have spines, as opposed to leaves, and some have glochids, which are tiny barbed bristles. Grand Canyon cacti most commonly have flowers of red, purple or yellow. The majority grow in the inner canyon, although several species are found on the rim. Some of the common catus species found in the park are the California barrel, fishhook, beavertail, desert prickly pear, claretcup hedgehog, Englemann hedgehog, and whipple cholla. For a complete list of plant species found in Grand Canyon National Park, please see the Grand Canyon Plant List.
 

Related Information

Canyon Sketches Vol 02 - April 2008

Volunteers Help Control Invasive Plants
 
Invasive plants such as Sahara mustard pose a serious ecological threat to Grand Canyon. Volunteers have made important contributions towards controlling this aggressive invader over the last few years. Volunteer trips with Science and Resource Management’s vegetation program are fun and educational and give people who love Grand Canyon the opportunity to help preserve park resources.

Canyon Sketches Vol 05 - August 2008
Park Biologists Conserve Rare Plant
Plant biologists identified several populations of Tusayan flameflower (Phemeranthus validulus) in areas that will be impacted by the construction of parking lots at Canyon View Information Plaza. In order to conserve this rare Grand Canyon species, they recently salvaged plants from construction zones and transplanted them in suitable habitat nearby.

Visit the Canyon Sketches eMagazine Home Page


Colorado River Plant List (280kb Excel Worksheet)

Grand Canyon Exotic Plant List 2008 02 (45kb PDF File)

Grand Canyon Vascular Plant List (211kb Excel Worksheet)

Grand Canyon Non-Vascular Plants (330.7kb PDF File)

Grand Canyon Potentially Invasive Weed List (17.8kb PDF File)

Grand Canyon Threatened & Endangered Species List
(52.5kb PDF File)

Guide to the Special Status Plants of Grand Canyon
Part One (1.44MB PDF File)
Part Two (2.05MB PDF File)
Part Three (1.57MB PDF File)

List of Special Status Plants of Grand Canyon
(30kb Excel Worksheet)

mountain lion kitten
Mountain Lion Kittens
See and hear them in their den.
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Hiking Tips
Hiking Tips
for a successful hike
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Teacher resources
Grand Canyon resources for teachers
Links to "For Teachers" page
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PLANTS IN THE GRAND CANON  

Did You Know?
There are approximately 1,737 known species of vascular plants, 167 species of fungi, 64 species of moss and 195 species of lichen found in Grand Canyon National Park. This variety is largely due to the 8,000 foot elevation change from the river up to the highest point on the North Rim.
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Last Updated: August 08, 2008 at 13:25 EST