Two new Acanthocereus species from western Mexico

Field research in western Mexico led to the description of two new species, Acanthocereus crypticus and Acanthocereus veronicae. The paper appeared in Botany Letters on 17 May 2026. The authors combined comparisons of three chloroplast DNA regions with juvenile and adult stem, flower and fruit characters. Acanthocereus crypticus encompasses populations from Jalisco that had been associated with Acanthocereus rosei for more than 45 years. Its adult stems are slender, cylindrical and slightly mottled, whereas juvenile stems have three or four ribs. Acanthocereus veronicae from Jalisco and Nayarit retains three ribs in both juvenile and adult stems.