Creeping Devil
Encyclopedia
Stenocereus eruca, commonly known as Creeping Devil, is a member of the family Cactaceae
. It is one of the most distinctive cacti, a member of the relatively small genus Stenocereus
. It is endemic
to the central Pacific coast of Baja California Sur
, and is found only on sandy soils, where it forms massive colonies.
As with all Cacti, Creeping Devil is succulent, and is reported to contain mescaline
and sterol
s. Growth patterns can be widely scattered as individual stems; in favorable localities they can form impenetrable patches of branching stems measuring several metres across. The Creeping Devil is columnar, with a very spiny stem which is creamy green in color, averaging 5 cm in diameter and 1.5-2 m long, with only the terminal end raised from the ground. A height of 20-30 cm is normal since this cactus is recumbent
. The large, nocturnal flower
s are white, pink, or yellow; usually 10-14 cm long with a spiny ovary, and flowering sparingly in response to rain. The spiny fruit
is 3-4 cm long with black seeds.
Creeping Devil lies on the ground and grows at one end while the other end slowly dies, with a succession of new roots developing on the underside of the stem. The growth rate is adapted to the moderate, moist marine environment of the Baja peninsula, and can achieve in excess of 60 cm per year, but when transplanted to a hot, arid environment the cacti can grow as little as 60 cm per decade. Over the course of many years, the entire cactus will slowly travel, with stems branching and taking root toward the growing tips, while older stem portions die and disintegrate. This traveling chain of growth gives rise to the name eruca, which means "caterpillar" as well as the common name Creeping Devil.
Stenocereus eruca is considered the "most extreme case of clonal propagation in the cactus family" (Gibson and Nobel, 1986). This means that due to isolation and scarcity of pollinating creatures, the plant is able to clone
itself. This is done by pieces detaching from the major shoot as their bases die and rot.
Other members of this genus that are found in the Baja Peninsula of California are Stenocereus thurberi (Organ Pipe Cactus, Pitaya Dulce) and Stenocereus gummosus (Sour Pitaya, Pitaya Agria, Pitayha). While once thought to be threatened with extinction, further evidence showed it not to be so. Transplantation, while not recommended due to environmentally specific factors, can be successfully with strict adherence to maintaining conditions which mirror the native environment.
Cactus
A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
. It is one of the most distinctive cacti, a member of the relatively small genus Stenocereus
Stenocereus
Stenocereus is a genus of columnar or tree-like cacti from the Baja California Peninsula and other parts of Mexico, Arizona in the United States, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Venezuela and the ABC islands of the Dutch Caribbean. The genus has been enlarged by the addition of species from several other...
. It is endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to the central Pacific coast of Baja California Sur
Baja California Sur
Baja California Sur , is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state on October 8, 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises...
, and is found only on sandy soils, where it forms massive colonies.
As with all Cacti, Creeping Devil is succulent, and is reported to contain mescaline
Mescaline
Mescaline or 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenethylamine is a naturally occurring psychedelic alkaloid of the phenethylamine class used mainly as an entheogen....
and sterol
Sterol
Sterols, also known as steroid alcohols, are a subgroup of the steroids and an important class of organic molecules. They occur naturally in plants, animals, and fungi, with the most familiar type of animal sterol being cholesterol...
s. Growth patterns can be widely scattered as individual stems; in favorable localities they can form impenetrable patches of branching stems measuring several metres across. The Creeping Devil is columnar, with a very spiny stem which is creamy green in color, averaging 5 cm in diameter and 1.5-2 m long, with only the terminal end raised from the ground. A height of 20-30 cm is normal since this cactus is recumbent
Recumbent
Recumbent may refer to:* Recumbence, the act or state of lying down or leaning.* Recumbent bicycle, a bicycle which places the rider in a seated or supine position...
. The large, nocturnal flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are white, pink, or yellow; usually 10-14 cm long with a spiny ovary, and flowering sparingly in response to rain. The spiny fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
is 3-4 cm long with black seeds.
Creeping Devil lies on the ground and grows at one end while the other end slowly dies, with a succession of new roots developing on the underside of the stem. The growth rate is adapted to the moderate, moist marine environment of the Baja peninsula, and can achieve in excess of 60 cm per year, but when transplanted to a hot, arid environment the cacti can grow as little as 60 cm per decade. Over the course of many years, the entire cactus will slowly travel, with stems branching and taking root toward the growing tips, while older stem portions die and disintegrate. This traveling chain of growth gives rise to the name eruca, which means "caterpillar" as well as the common name Creeping Devil.
Stenocereus eruca is considered the "most extreme case of clonal propagation in the cactus family" (Gibson and Nobel, 1986). This means that due to isolation and scarcity of pollinating creatures, the plant is able to clone
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
itself. This is done by pieces detaching from the major shoot as their bases die and rot.
Other members of this genus that are found in the Baja Peninsula of California are Stenocereus thurberi (Organ Pipe Cactus, Pitaya Dulce) and Stenocereus gummosus (Sour Pitaya, Pitaya Agria, Pitayha). While once thought to be threatened with extinction, further evidence showed it not to be so. Transplantation, while not recommended due to environmentally specific factors, can be successfully with strict adherence to maintaining conditions which mirror the native environment.