Opuntia basilaris Calflora

Calflora, a 501c3 non-profit

Taxon Report

Opuntia basilaris Engelm. & J. M. Bigelow

Beavertail cactus, Beavertail pricklypear

2020 Lynn Sweet

2016 Anna Wolfe

2019 Marcia M

2020 Diane Etchison

2019 Matt Berger

2023 Cynthia Powell

2019 Diane Etchison

2024 Zanya Biviano

2018 Diane Etchison

2023 Richard Larimore

2023 Wendy Walker

2022 Mike Russler

2020 Matt Berger

2020 Marisa Persaud

Opuntia basilaris is a shrub (stem succulent) that is native to California, and also found elsewhere in western North America.


	Plant Range Observation Search ~3168 records in California Plant Characteristics

Bloom Period

Photos on Calflora


Subspecies and Varieties:
... var. basilaris ... var. brachyclada ... var. treleasei
Genus:	Opuntia
Family:	Cactaceae
Category:	angiosperm
PLANTS group:	Dicot
Jepson eFlora section: eudicot

Communities: Coastal Sage Scrub, Creosote Bush Scrub, Southern Oak Woodland, Chaparral, Valley Grassland, Pinyon-Juniper Woodland, Joshua Tree Woodland

Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + PLANTS + POWO

Information about Opuntia basilaris from other sources


Nursery availability from CNPLX This plant is available commercially. Jepson eFlora USDA PLANTS Profile (OPBA2) Photos on Calflora Photos on CalPhotos Google Images Photos on iNaturalist ID Tips on PlantID.net	ITIS Original Publication citation International Plants Names Index Search efloras.org (Flora of North America) Landscape information from Calscape BONAP Distribution Map Consortium of California Herbaria 2 Search the Native American Ethnobotany Database	Add an Observation Location Suitability Planting Guide Distribution by County
photos / record / common / links

Suggested Citation

Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals. [web application]. 2025. The Calflora Database [a non-profit organization]. Available: https://www.calflora.org/ (Accessed: 05/14/2025).