Miqueliopuntia miquelii

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The accepted name is Miqueliopuntia miquelii (formerly Opuntia miquelii, Cylindropuntia miquelii and Austrocylindropuntia miquelii). Plants of the World Online recognises Miqueliopuntia as a monotypic genus containing this species alone. Friedrich Ritter published the separate genus and current name combination in 1980. The former names therefore refer to the same plant under different classifications. [2-WWW] [2-WWW]

The current synonym list also includes Opuntia geissei, O. pulverulenta and O. rosiflora. The former variety Austrocylindropuntia miquelii var. jilesii and form Miqueliopuntia miquelii f. flava are included in the species in this database. When compiling the literature, their names therefore lead to one account. [2-WWW]

Segmented stems, areoles and flowers

In the official Chilean species description, the segments are cylindrical, bluish green and 8–20 cm long, reaching 6 cm in diameter. Their surface comprises 10–15 rows of low, flattened tubercles. The areoles bear yellow-ochre spines and brown glochids. Glochids are small, readily detached spines characteristic of opuntioids. The large spines of this species were described as lacking sheaths. [23-WWW]

According to the same account, flowers are 5–7 cm long, ranging from white to pink and carmine. The yellowish, ellipsoidal fruits are fleshy and contain greenish pulp. Discussing earlier field observations, Guiggi cites a geographical change in flower colour from reddish towards white in a southerly direction. He also describes a change in fruit shape along this gradient. This is variation within the species as treated here. [23-WWW] [Guiggi 2012]

Sandy sites in northern Chile

The species is endemic to Chile. It occurs in the Atacama and Coquimbo regions, on the coast and farther inland, from near Copiapó to areas south of La Serena. The official description gives sites from close to sea level to around 1000 m above sea level. They include sandy terraces, bottoms and slopes, particularly those facing north. [23-WWW]

Specific herbarium specimens compiled in Guiggi's study add to the range information. Material was collected at sites including near Vallenar, north of Domeyko and at El Molle in the Elqui Valley. Such records connect the plant's name with a place, date and preserved specimen. Individual collection points document occurrence at a given time. [Guiggi 2012]

Clump renewal from stem fragments

Clumps can reach several metres across. The Chilean species account emphasises strong regeneration from detached segments, which root and initiate further growth. Vegetative reproduction allows a clump to persist and expand through fragmentation. The account also mentions reproduction from seed. [23-WWW]

A specimen fixing the meaning of the name

In 2012, Guiggi designated a neotype for the name Opuntia miquelii, a specimen replacing missing original material as the nomenclatural reference. It was collected on 6 December 1994 in the municipality of Freirina, Huasco Province, by U. Eggli and B.E. Leuenberger. It bears collection number 2585. It includes stem, flower, fruit and seed material. The main specimen was designated in the CONC herbarium, with duplicates in B, ZSS and SI. [Guiggi 2012]

The importance of such material lies in the possibility of comparing plant features again. The name was linked to a preserved specimen containing vegetative and reproductive organs. This allows subsequent identifications and former name combinations to be compared with a specific botanical basis. [Guiggi 2012]

Relationships read from plastomes

In 2023, Köhler and colleagues reconstructed plastomes of 43 representatives of all seven Opuntieae genera included in the study. A plastome is the complement of plastid DNA. In the phylogenetic trees, Miqueliopuntia, Salmonopuntia and Airampoa formed a shared clade. The authors also linked its distinctness to southern South American geography and the cylindrical stems of the first two genera. [Köhler et al. 2023]

The position of this clade relative to Opuntia and the Brasiliopuntia–Tacinga group differed between analyses of whole plastomes and gene regions alone. Some alternative arrangements had strong statistical support. The result therefore identifies a well-defined group of closely related genera, with continuing disagreement over some deeper branches of the tree. The cylindrical stem was considered a possible feature retained from an earlier evolutionary stage of this lineage. [Köhler et al. 2023]

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