🌵 Nature pulled the same trick twice: a cactus in America and a Euphorbia in Africa. Of the nearly 2,000 species of Euphorbia, about 850 are true succulents, mostly African and Malagasy. They are the great “fake cacti”: fleshy stems, ribs, and spikes that can deceive at first glance. But their spikes are not true spines like those of the Cactaceae: in Euphorbia, they are firmly anchored to the stem and if you try to detach them, they secrete their famous white latex, which is irritating to the skin and mucous membranes. The resemblance is an extraordinary example of evolutionary convergence: different families, almost identical solutions to sun, drought, and herbivores.
🌵 Nature pulled the same trick twice: a cactus in America and a Euphorbia in Africa. Of the nearly 2,000 species of Euphorbia, about 850 are true succulents, mostly African and Malagasy. They are the great “fake cacti”: fleshy stems, ribs, and spikes that can deceive at first glance. But their spikes are not true spines like those of the Cactaceae: in Euphorbia, they are firmly anchored to the stem and if you try to detach them, they secrete their famous white latex, which is irritating to the skin and mucous membranes. The resemblance is an extraordinary example of evolutionary convergence: different families, almost identical solutions to sun, drought, and herbivores.
