Native records: 2 botanical areas
Argentina Northeast, Paraguay
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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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Distribution last verified:
A small globose cactus in the family Cactaceae, native to rocky areas in Paraguay and northeastern Argentina. The wild species is green and photosynthetic; the colorful grafted 'moon cacti' sold in cultivation are chlorophyll-free mutants of this species grafted onto rootstock.
Description
A small, slow-growing globose cactus, usually 5–10 cm in diameter. The stem has 9–11 shallow ribs, slightly undulating. The areoles are woolly when young, bearing 5–9 short, white to pale yellowish spines, sometimes curved. Flowers are funnel-shaped, 4–5 cm across, white to pale pink with a slightly pinkish throat. Fruits are small, club-shaped to spherical, dehiscing when ripe; seeds are minute and black. In habitat it grows singly or in small clusters on rocky outcrops or gravelly plains in dry subtropical regions. Active in warmer months and dormant in winter.
Habitat
Native to the Gran Chaco region of Paraguay and northeastern Argentina (Chaco and Formosa provinces). Found on rocky outcrops and in gravelly dry grasslands, typically at low to moderate elevations. Requires strong light and excellent drainage; winter is relatively dry in its native range.
Distribution areas
Argentina
- Argentina NortheastNative
Paraguay
- ParaguayNative
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
- Aw Tropical, savannah
- BSh Arid, steppe, hot
- Cwa Temperate, dry winter, hot summer
The same climate occurs in 106 areas worldwide, 104 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
Chin cactus、Plaid cactus
- Family
- Cactaceae
- Genus
- Gymnocalycium
Other species in Gymnocalycium
Sources
World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP), version 2026-06-04
Argentina · Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew · wcvp_distribution.csv
Open sourceWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP), version 2026-06-04
Paraguay · Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew · wcvp_distribution.csv
Open source
Image information
Photograph of Gymnocalycium mihanovichii
Michael Wolf ( Webseite ) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · File page