Echinocereus parkeri

Echinocereus parkeri is a species of cactus native to Mexico.

Description
Echinocereus parkeri grows in compact cushions or open groups with many shoots. The shoots, which are tapered or cylindrical, can reach up to 15 cm in length and 2 to 6 cm in diameter. They have six to ten tuberculated ribs. The one to eight central spines, initially dark but soon turning glassy white to yellowish, range from 2 to 6.5 cm long. The six to 18 slender, mostly glassy radialal spines are 0.7 to 1.2 cm long. The funnel-shaped flowers are magenta to deep pink with a white throat. They appear near the tips of the shoots, measuring 4.5 to 5.5 cm in length and 4.5 to 6 cm in diameter. The green, spherical fruits have white flesh and are covered with falling, glassy white spines.

Subspecies
Accepted subspecies:
 * Echinocereus parkeri subsp. arteagensis W.Blum & Mich.Lange
 * Echinocereus parkeri subsp. gonzalezii (N.P.Taylor) N.P.Taylor
 * Echinocereus parkeri subsp. mazapilensis W.Blum & Mich.Lange
 * Echinocereus parkeri subsp. parkeri

Distribution
Echinocereus parkeri is found growing in the Chihuahuan Desert in the Mexican states of Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, and Zacatecas at elevations of 1450 to 1900 meters. Plants are found growing among Mammillaria melanocentra subsp. rubrograndis and Mammillaria glassii.

Taxonomy
The species was first described by Nigel Paul Taylor in 1988. The specific epithet "parkeri" honors David Parker, the founder of the British "Echinocereus Reference Collection."