GRIFFITHS: NEW AND OLD SPECIES OF OPUNTIA 203 
practically all armed; spicules yellow, invisible until third year 
and then in a small, compact, inconspicuous tuft in upper portions 
of areole, never conspicuous; spines white with translucent tips, 
flattened, twisted, not annular, becoming dirty gray, on last year’s 
joints mostly 2 or 3 with 4 commonly on edges, the longest upper 
central one 3-3.5 cm. long, the others gradually smaller down to 
8 mm. in length, on joints two years of age increasing about one to 
the areole and the longest are 3.5-4 cm. and the others in propor- 
tion and increasing even beyond this in both numbers and length, 
all rather stout; flowers yellow about 6 cm. in diameter, filaments 
greenish at base, style slightly tinged, stigma light greenish-yellow, 
10-parted; fruit turning yellowish but soon approaching orange 
but not so deep as naranjada of the Mexicans, having a faint tinge 
of pink, long, obovate, with prominent dark brown areoles broadly 
obovate to subcircular and 3 mm. long, 15-16 mm. apart at the 
middle, more crowded and more elongated above, its spicules 
yellow, short, and central, surrounded by the I mm. long wool, 
subtended by 1 to 4 variable, mottled, delicate, fugacious, hairlike 
spines in, the upper areoles. 
This, which I collected at Hepasote, Mexico, is one of the 
finest fruited of the Mexican pears. The fruit is quite character- 
istic, palatable and belongs to the general ‘“blanca-amarilla”’ 
groups. When first matured it is a typical “blanca” but soon it 
would pass more readily for ‘‘amarilla.” Itisa very spiny species, 
consequently I doubted whether it should have the common name 
“‘liso,”? but several peons, to whom we are always obliged to refer 
for common names, insisted that this is the one by which it is 
commonly designated. The pulp is readily separable from the 
seed and the nutritive materials, unlike “‘ tuna cardona”’ (O. strep- 
ticantha) is held in solution. When the pulp is removed prepara- 
tory for eating it is considerably red-colored in the rind and both 
the interior and exterior of the pulp havea decidedly orange cast. 
It is a large sized tuna, commonly 5 x 9 cm., and slightly to deeply 
pitted. The species has not been seriously injured by cold at 
Chico except in January, 1913, when our stock was all reduced to 
cuttings. As frequently happens with these plants the articula- 
tion between the joints is weakened first and the trunks may be 
killed when the outer joints may be saved by planting after a 
period of recovery from the effect of cold. 
The type is preserved under my collection No. 8071 and was 
secured at Hepasote, Mexico, in August, 1905. It has been in 
