Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
ocotillo
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images
ocotillo hummingbird pollination Spines of the ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens). (Top) The leaves begin to transform into spines. (Bottom) The blades fall off and the hardened petioles become spines. Clusters of leaves also develop at the axil of each spine.
Quizzes
Venus's-flytrap. Venus's-flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) one of the best known of the meat-eating plants. Carnivorous plant, Venus flytrap, Venus fly trap
Plants: From Cute to Carnivorous
Related Questions
Read Next
Flower bingo
Britannica’s Flower Bingo
Plant seedlings emerging from rich fertile soil
Do Plants Feel Pain?
Macro image of pollen-covered bee on purple crocus. (flowers, stamen, pollination, insects, nature)
5 Fast Facts About Flower Anatomy
Anemone coronaria, the poppy anemone, Spanish marigold, or windflower, is a species of flowering plant.
What’s the Difference Between Angiosperms and Gymnosperms?
Hemp (Cannabis sativa).
9 Mind-Altering Plants
Discover
John F. Kennedy as a boy with his family
What Did We Call America’s Elite Before the “1 Percent”?
Baseball laying in the grass. Homepage blog 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society, sports and games athletics
10 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time
Los Angeles Police Department wanted flyer on Elizabeth Short, aka the "Black Dahlia," who was brutally murdered in January 1947. The FBI supported the Los Angeles Police Department in the case, including by identifying Short through her fingerprints that
America’s 5 Most Notorious Cold Cases (Including One You May Have Thought Was Already Solved)
Super Typhoon Noru over the western tropical Pacific Ocean as observed by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA Aqua satellite July 31 2017
What Is the Difference Between a Typhoon and a Super Typhoon?
Santa Claus flying in his sleigh, christmas, reindeer
Was Santa Claus a Real Person?
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), Italian Renaissance painter from Florence. Engraving by Cosomo Colombini (d. 1812) after a Leonardo self portrait. Ca. 1500.
10 Famous Artworks by Leonardo da Vinci
Orange basketball on black background and with low key lighting. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
The 10 Greatest Basketball Players of All Time
ocotillo
ocotillo Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens).

ocotillo

plant
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/plant/ocotillo
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Also known as: Fouquieria splendens, Jacob’s staff, coachwhip, vine cactus
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Article History
Also called:
coachwhip, Jacob’s staff, or vine cactus
Related Topics:
Fouquieria
See all related content
hummingbird pollination
hummingbird pollinationBright red tubular flowers of ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens).

ocotillo, (Fouquieria splendens), flowering spiny shrub (family Fouquieriaceae) characteristic of rocky deserts from western Texas to southern California and southward into Mexico. Near the plant’s base, the stem divides into several slender, erect, wide-spreading, intensely spiny branches, usually about 2.5 to 6 metres (8 to 20 feet) long. The branches bear small, rounded, drought-deciduous leaves, which fall soon after the end of the winter rainy season. They leave behind the petioles (leaf stalks), which harden and develop into stout spines, and most of the photosynthesis is carried out by the greenish stems. The bright scarlet flowers are in showy branched terminal clusters 15 to 25 cm (6 to 10 inches) long. Ocotillo is grown as a hedge plant and occasional ornamental in its native range.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.