Echinocereus adustus is a species of cactus native to Mexico.
Echinocereus adustus typically grows as a solitary cactus. Its shoots are depressed spherical to short cylindrical, reaching up to long and in diameter, with fibrous roots. It has 11 to 20 wavy, slightly tuberous ribs. The cactus may have up to nine dark brown to blackish central spines, up to 3.2 cm long, with the top spine being very short and the bottom spines spreading horizontally. It also has 8 to 31 white marginal spines with darker tips, up to long, with the radial spines being the longest.
The short, funnel-shaped flowers are pink, appearing well below the shoot tips. They are long and in diameter, with white or very light green scars. The egg-shaped fruits are up to long with falling thorns, and when ripe, they are almost dry and split vertically.[1]
There are two recognized subspecies:[2]
| Image | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| Echinocereus adustus subsp. adustus | Mexico (Chihuahua) | |
| Echinocereus adustus subsp. keizerae | Mexico (Chihuahua) | |
| Echinocereus adustus subsp. schwarzii | Mexico (Durango) | |
Echinocereus adustus is found growing in sandy loam in grasslands in the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Durango at altitudes between .[3]
The species was first described by George Engelmann in 1848.[4] The specific epithet "adustus" is Latin for "blackened" or "burnt," referring to the blackish spines of the cactus.[5]