Native records: 2 botanical areas
Mexico Northeast, Texas
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Distribution is shown as WGSRPD Level 3 areas. It does not imply the species occurs throughout an entire area.
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A small, spineless cactus in the family Cactaceae, native to southern Texas in the United States and northeastern Mexico. It has a flattened, spherical stem with 5-8 prominent ribs that give it a star-shaped appearance when viewed from above.
Description
A small, solitary, spineless cactus with a flattened globose stem. Typically has 5-8 prominent vertical ribs creating a distinctive star-shaped outline when viewed from above—hence the common names 'star cactus', 'sea urchin cactus', and 'sand dollar cactus'. The stem is dark green, 3-16 cm in diameter, covered with small white woolly areoles and scattered white trichome dots that give it a speckled appearance. Areoles bear no spines (or very rarely a few weak ones). Produces large, yellow, silky-textured flowers at the apex in spring to summer, followed by green to reddish fruits. Grows partly buried in the ground in its native habitat.
Habitat
Native to the Rio Grande valley of southern Texas (USA) and the lowlands of northeastern Mexico (Nuevo León, Tamaulipas). Occurs in desert, gravelly flats, and dry shrubland biomes at low elevations, typically growing half-buried in the substrate.
Distribution areas
Mexico
- Mexico NortheastNative
United States of America
- TexasNative
Climate of the native range
The Köppen climate classes found in the areas this plant is recorded as native to. It does not mean an entire area has that climate.
- Cfa Temperate, no dry season, hot summer
- BSh Arid, steppe, hot
- BSk Arid, steppe, cold
- BWh Arid, desert, hot
- Cwb Temperate, dry winter, warm summer
The same climate occurs in 96 areas worldwide, 94 of which have no record of this plant. See them on the map
A matching climate does not mean the plant can grow there. Range limits are also set by things other than climate — dispersal history, soils, competition. Source: Beck et al. (2023), CC BY 4.0 (observed period 1991–2020).
Other names
Star cactus、Sand dollar cactus、Sea urchin cactus
- Family
- Cactaceae
- Genus
- Astrophytum
Other species in Astrophytum
- Astrophytum capricornebishop's-cap
- Astrophytum caput-medusae
- Astrophytum coahuilense
- Astrophytum myriostigmaBishop's cap cactus
- Astrophytum ornatummonk's-hood
Sources
World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP), version 2026-06-04
Mexico · Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew · wcvp_distribution.csv
Open sourceWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP), version 2026-06-04
United States of America · Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew · wcvp_distribution.csv
Open source
Image information
Photograph of Astrophytum asterias
GaleoC · CC BY-SA 3.0 · File page