Cactus Explorer

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Cactus Explorer Stefan Campbell is an Australian naturalist, habitat guide and science communicator.
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Directly along the Colombia/Venezuela border, it’s common to see these three cactus species: Pilosocereus lanuginosus, P...
29/08/2024

Directly along the Colombia/Venezuela border, it’s common to see these three cactus species: Pilosocereus lanuginosus, Praecereus euchlorus and Acanthocereus tetragonus.

I’d call the climate tropical savanna bordering on hot semi-arid. I was there in the dry/winter months however daytime temperatures will still getting up to 35C/95F

Espeletia uribei is endemic to Colombia and grows primarily in the montane tropical biome above 2,500m/8,200ft. It’s a v...
28/08/2024

Espeletia uribei is endemic to Colombia and grows primarily in the montane tropical biome above 2,500m/8,200ft. It’s a very slow growing species, and all the plants pictured are 100+ years old with little observable recruitment of seedlings or juvenile plants.

It’s conservation status is predicted to move from least concern to threatened in the coming years due to climate change which is driving wildfires in Colombia, as well as overuse as a medicinal and ornamental plant

Senecio formosus at 3,800m/12,500ft in the Venezuelan Andes ⛰️🇻🇪
28/08/2024

Senecio formosus at 3,800m/12,500ft in the Venezuelan Andes ⛰️🇻🇪

Most people wouldn’t look at this plant and think “cactus”, or even a “succulent plant” for that matter. However this le...
26/08/2024

Most people wouldn’t look at this plant and think “cactus”, or even a “succulent plant” for that matter. However this leafy shrub, or some might even say a tree, is among the basal members of the Cactaceae and can tell us a lot about the evolution of the cactus family - (It’s Leuenbergeria guamacho from the Colombia/Venezuela border) 🇨🇴🤝🇻🇪

Historically, all of these shrubby/tree like cactus plants were lumped into the genus Pereskia, but lack of clear-cut synapomorphies suggested that this genus actually represents a grade of ‘’basal’’ taxa. In 2019, Lodé formally divided Pereskia into three genera; Leuenbergeria, Pereskia and Rhodocactus, which was based on molecular data by Nyffeler & Eggli (2010) as well as morphological differences.

In fact, an additional proposal by Lodé is that Leuenbergeria s.s. is now circumscribed in its own subfamily, Leuenbergerioideeae, composed of two separate clades - Leuenbergeria and Pereskia (the latter includes both Pereskia and Rhodocactus), however the use of the subfamily Leuenbergerioideeae by other taxonomists remains controversial with Pereskioideae still being the currently accepted subfam.

So how can we simplify all of this visually and geographically? Think of Leuenbergeria as the northern hemisphere clade and Pereskia as the southern.

Leuenbergeria have red, pink, or yellow to orange flowers. Stems develop wood at an early age. Leuenbergeria is distributed throughout south west Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean islands and northern South America.

Pereskia and Rhodocactus are endemic to South America and only develop woody trunks at maturity.

Pereskia is restricted to species occurring in the Andean region with areoles that lack leaves. The flowers are white, cream, or pinkish.

Rhodocactus are native to southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. Typically, all have pink flowers. The areoles in Rhodocactus bear leaves, and can also form new shoots similar to some members of the Opuntioideae subfamily.

Mammillaria mammillaris? Andean foothills Venezuela 🇻🇪
23/08/2024

Mammillaria mammillaris? Andean foothills Venezuela 🇻🇪

Melocactus schatzlii under Stenocereus griseusin the foothills of the Venezuelan Andes ⛰️
22/08/2024

Melocactus schatzlii under Stenocereus griseus
in the foothills of the Venezuelan Andes ⛰️

Anyone who knows my plant tastes will tell you that I’m a HUGE bromeliad fan 🪭😌Many of you have probably heard of Puya r...
21/08/2024

Anyone who knows my plant tastes will tell you that I’m a HUGE bromeliad fan 🪭😌

Many of you have probably heard of Puya raimondii, but have you ever heard of another big Andean Puya, Puya goudotiana which is endemic to Colombia?

It’s a high altitude species that sends up a massive inflorescence up to 5m/16ft tall just once in it’s lifetime. I wasn’t lucky enough to catch one in flower but they are yellow/cream in colour and quite showy

See you on this Thursday at 6:00pm Pacific Time for our giveaway collaboration!🌵 If you’re located in the USA 🇺🇸 and do...
20/08/2024

See you on this Thursday at 6:00pm Pacific Time for our giveaway collaboration!🌵

If you’re located in the USA 🇺🇸 and don’t already have this app, consider downloading it for your chance to win cash to spend on plants from a selected seller (to be announced). Head over to my profile on the Palmstreet app and turn on notifications for the live event - Cactus Explorer Collaboration

This app is rapidly gaining popularity and is much more than just buying and selling plants, but also a social media platform for plant lovers to ask questions, share tips and their plant photos and videos, so why not give it a go? See you there!

Pilosocereus lanuginosus in the Colombian Andes ⛰️🇨🇴
19/08/2024

Pilosocereus lanuginosus in the Colombian Andes ⛰️🇨🇴

Lying down on the job again… 🌱 = Espeletia pescana
19/08/2024

Lying down on the job again… 🌱 = Espeletia pescana

Eriosyce confinis, Atacama Región Chile 🏜️
17/08/2024

Eriosyce confinis, Atacama Región Chile 🏜️

Probably the most unusual Oreocereus, O. hempelianus high in the Chilean Andes ⛰️🇨🇱
15/08/2024

Probably the most unusual Oreocereus, O. hempelianus high in the Chilean Andes ⛰️🇨🇱

Copiapoa kranziana, Antofagasta Región, Chile 🇨🇱
14/08/2024

Copiapoa kranziana, Antofagasta Región, Chile 🇨🇱

Bomarea ovallei (formerly Leontochir ovallei) is a fascinating member of the Alstroemeriaceae endemic to the coastal Ata...
12/08/2024

Bomarea ovallei (formerly Leontochir ovallei) is a fascinating member of the Alstroemeriaceae endemic to the coastal Atacama fog desert and is known by locals as “garra de león”, in English, “lion’s claw”. It’s endangered in the wild and seldom grown in cultivation

The Burrowing Owl Athene cunicularia with Zephyranthes bagnoldii in Chile’s Atacama Region 🏜️
12/08/2024

The Burrowing Owl Athene cunicularia with Zephyranthes bagnoldii in Chile’s Atacama Region 🏜️

It’s happening again - this Tuesday 13 August at 7.30pm (BST) I’ll be giving a FREE talk about The Flowering Desert of C...
11/08/2024

It’s happening again - this Tuesday 13 August at 7.30pm (BST) I’ll be giving a FREE talk about The Flowering Desert of Chile for the British Cactus and Succulent Society

This is a live only event where you’ll see exclusive photos of the flowering desert, learn about the ecology in one of the driest places on the planet and see me kissing a cactus…

Join Zoom Meeting details:

https://bcss.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=6eaeb4ef84a62a7993da4bad4&id=bf09854b91&e=1309a16268

Meeting ID: 847 2792 7888
Passcode: bcss

Copiapoa dealbata with wildflowers along the Atacama coastline 🏜️
10/08/2024

Copiapoa dealbata with wildflowers along the Atacama coastline 🏜️

Thelocactus bicolor in Coahuila México 🇲🇽
09/08/2024

Thelocactus bicolor in Coahuila México 🇲🇽

Al Laius spotted in the wild photographing a giant Yucca filifera. San Luis Potosí, México 🇲🇽
08/08/2024

Al Laius spotted in the wild photographing a giant Yucca filifera. San Luis Potosí, México 🇲🇽

Pelecyphora strobiliformis in bloom, San Luis Potosí, Mexico 🇲🇽
08/08/2024

Pelecyphora strobiliformis in bloom, San Luis Potosí, Mexico 🇲🇽

Ferocactus glaucescens is my copilot
07/08/2024

Ferocactus glaucescens is my copilot

Rapicactus subterraneus (formally Turbinicarpus subterraneus) is a tiny Mexican cactus very cryptic in habitat and endem...
06/08/2024

Rapicactus subterraneus (formally Turbinicarpus subterraneus) is a tiny Mexican cactus very cryptic in habitat and endemic to the Chihuahuan Desert. The main shoot is connected to the tuberous root system by a narrow neck (which is is also shoot tissue)

Some habitat pics of the endangered Echinocactus grusonii (now in the monospecific genus Kroenleinia). This cactus is in...
05/08/2024

Some habitat pics of the endangered Echinocactus grusonii (now in the monospecific genus Kroenleinia). This cactus is incredibly common in cultivation but RARE in habitat

Cactus Explorer Friedrich Ritter discovered Aztekium ritteri and decided that the genus name Aztekium was fitting since ...
04/08/2024

Cactus Explorer Friedrich Ritter discovered Aztekium ritteri and decided that the genus name Aztekium was fitting since the structure of the ribs and transverse ribs reminded him of the Mesoamerican Aztec pyramid architecture

Lophophora diffusa 🇲🇽
31/07/2024

Lophophora diffusa 🇲🇽

How big can biznagas get? This one is almost 3m/10ft tall! 🌵= Echinocactus platyacanthus
30/07/2024

How big can biznagas get? This one is almost 3m/10ft tall!

🌵= Echinocactus platyacanthus

Geometricus 🔥
27/07/2024

Geometricus 🔥

More Blossfeldia liliputana this time found in Permian sedimentary rock along with plant fossils
25/07/2024

More Blossfeldia liliputana this time found in Permian sedimentary rock along with plant fossils

Habitat of Eriosyce bulbocalyx in La Rioja Argentina 🇦🇷 🏜️
25/07/2024

Habitat of Eriosyce bulbocalyx in La Rioja Argentina 🇦🇷 🏜️

Copiapoa gigantea along the Antofagasta coastline 🏜️
22/07/2024

Copiapoa gigantea along the Antofagasta coastline 🏜️

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Live $200 giveaway with @palmstreetapp this Thursday August 22 at 6pm Pacific Time. This giveaway is happening on the Palmstreet App, so if you don’t already have it, make sure to download it and make an account to participate 🌵👌 See you there! *Shipping is within the U.S. only

El Tatio Geysers, Chile 🇨🇱

En todos mis viajes, México es definitivamente el país donde he visto más evidencia de saqueos de cactus y venta ilegal de plantas de hábitat.

The Atacama Giant (Gigante de Atacama) is a massive geoglyph in the middle of the Atacama Desert, Chile. At 119 meters (390 feet), it is the largest prehistoric anthropomorphic geoglyph which is said to represent a shaman, spiritual figure or deity. The figure served as an early astronomical calendar and the points on the top and side of the head would indicate what season it would be depending on their alignment with the moon. This was important in determining when the rainy season would come in the arid Atacama Desert. The Atacama Giant is one out of nearly 5,000 geoglyphs that have been discovered in the Atacama region in the last three decades. It is believed that they are the work of several successive cultures that dwelt in this region of South America, including the Tiwanaku and Inca.

Atacama fog desert, Chile 🏜️

Cactus exploring in Mexico 🌵🇲🇽 #Lophophora #Lophophoradiffusa #explore #explorar #nature #naturaleza #mexico #cactus #cactusmagazine #cacto #kaktus #kaktüs #kaktusy #cacti #cactusflower #thelocactus

Sights and sounds exploring the Teotihuacán pyramids in Mexico 🏜️🇲🇽 #travel #explore #mexico #desert #cactus #viajar #explorar #nature #naturaleza #desierto #trekking #montana #pyramids #piramides #teotihuacan #teotihuacanpyramids

Wild West…. 🏜️🇲🇽 #travel #explore #mexico #desert #cactus #aztekium #ariocarpus #mammillaria #cacto #kakteen #viajar #explorar #nature #naturaleza #cacti #desierto #trekking #montana #ferocactus

Lo pasé muy bien en @mukumbari Venezuela, gracias por el trato VIP y por dejarme volar mi drone 🤭🏔️ 🇻🇪 🚡 En el primer video se puede ver la vista del Pico Bolívar, la cumbre más alta de Venezuela en 5,700 m #venezuela #picobolivar #picoespejo #cordilleradelosandes #andesmountains #southamerica #travel #adventure #explore #teleferico #telefericodemerida #viajerosvenezuela #viajar

Weird plant habitats of Colombia 🇨🇴😵‍💫🌵 #cactus #cycad #frailejon #frailejones #puya #melocactus #exoticplants #plantas #explore #nature #botanica #colombia #explorecolombia

Aztekium hintonii dreams, Nuevo León Mexico 🇲🇽🌵 #Aztekium #Aztekiumhintonii #cactus #cacti #kakteen #cacto #cactusflower #mexico #botany #flora #explore #nature #trekking

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The Cactus Explorer

Hello! ¡Hola!

I'm Stefan, an Australian naturalist, habitat guide, science communicator and owner of Cactus Explorer Tours and Consulting. I am primarily interested in desert and xeric scrubland habitats and ecology - specifically that of the cactaceae (cacti) and their interaction with the environment.

There are almost two thousand species of cacti throughout the Americas, of which many are now threatened or endangered. My primary objective is to generate interest in the lives of cacti and their sympatric companions, aiming to preserve the environments in which these noble plans live.

By doing this, I hope to encourage governments and corporations to see the value in their countries unspoiled nature and motivate them to preserve their natural resources and parks for the future.