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Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus Glass & R.A.Foster
Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) 44: 48 (figs. 2-3, 7). 1972 as: "conothele"
Family: CACTACEAE

Accepted Scientific Name: Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus (Glass & R.A.Foster) Glass
Guía Identif. Cact. Amenazadas México 1: Th/con ssp. argenteus (1998 publ. 1997), as 'conothele' Glass

Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli
SB311 Ascencion, NL, Mexico with a dense covering of short white spines and pink flowers.

Synonyms:

See all synonyms of Thelocactus conothelos
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Accepted name in llifle Database:
Thelocactus conothelos (Regel & E. Klein bis) F.M.Knuth
Kaktus-ABC [Backeb. & Knuth] 358. 1936 [12 Feb 1936]
Synonymy: 17 Accepted name in llifle Database:
Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus (Glass & R.A.Foster) Glass
Guía Identif. Cact. Amenazadas México 1: Th/con ssp. argenteus (1998 publ. 1997), as 'conothele'
Synonymy: 4 Accepted name in llifle Database:
Thelocactus conothelos subs. aurantiacus (Glass & R.A.Foster) Glass
Guía Identif. Cact. Amenazadas México 1: Th/con ssp. aurantiacus (1998 publ. 1997), as 'conothele'
Synonymy: 4 Accepted name in llifle Database:
Thelocactus conothelos subs. flavus (Mosco & Zanov.) Mosco & Zanov.
Bradleya 18: 63 (2000)
Synonymy: 4
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Subspecies, varieties, forms and cultivars of plants belonging to the Thelocactus conothelos group

Thelocactus conothelos and its subspecies argenteus and aurantiacus (and also the closely related Thelocactus flavus and Thelocactus garciae) are the most different from the other Thelocacti, both for flower morphology (in these species the primary filaments are inserted 4-5 mm above the base of the nectar chamber) and for seed micro-morphology (seed testa cells are conical and the surface of the cuticle is smooth). The seed-coat micro-morphology led Doweld to propose a new genus, Torreycactus, for them.

  • Thelocactus conothelos (Regel & E. Klein bis) F.M.Knuth: (ssp. conothelos) is usually solitary and globose, with tubercles not obscured by spines, and has 1-4 central spines, 10—16 radials, and magenta to white flowers. Distribution: Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosi, and Nuevo Leon.
  • Thelocactus conothelos f. albiflora hort.: has white flowers. Distribution: near Matehuala, San Luis Potosi, Mexico.
  • Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus (Glass & R.A.Foster) Glass: is solitary and globose to cylindrical, with tubercles mostly obscured by spines, and has creamy white central spines, about 20 glassy and silvery grayish white, and pinkish purple flowers. Distibution: near La Ascension, Nuevo Leon, at 2100 m.
  • Thelocactus conothelos subs. aurantiacus (Glass & R.A.Foster) Glass: is solitary, globose to somewhat cylindrical, with tubercles mostly obscured by spines with bright yellow to orange-yellow flowers. Distribution: Aramberri, Nuevo Leon, at 1000-1200 m.
  • Thelocactus conothelos f. aureiflora hort.: has bright yellow flowers.
  • Thelocactus conothelos subs. flavus (Mosco & Zanov.) Mosco & Zanov.: has strongly tubercled stems with long spines and yellow flowers. Distribution: San Luis Potosí, between Huizache and La Hincada.
  • Thelocactus garciae Glass & Mend.-Garc.: has flattened globose stems divided into tubercles, the areoles bear one or two glands. Distribution: vicinity of Bustamante.
  • Thelocactus longispinus: not dissimilar to Thelocactus conothelos subs. flavus but with longer spines.
  • Thelocactus panarottoanus Halda: same as Thelocactus conothelos subs. flavus.
  • Thelocactus saussieri (F.A.C.Weber) A.Berger: usually has a darker flower color, less and shorter spines and grows flatter (= less cylindrical) than the type species. Distribution: Nuevo León and Tamaulipas, Mexico.

6316 cactus-art Cactus Art
Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Cactus Art
6315 cactus-art Cactus Art
Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Cactus Art

6319 cactus-art Cactus Art
Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Cactus Art
6318 cactus-art Cactus Art
Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Cactus Art

6317 cactus-art Cactus Art
Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Cactus Art
6320 cactus-art Cactus Art
Thelocactus conothelos var. argenteus (Thelocactus conothelos subs. argenteus) Photo by: Cactus Art


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