Trees or shrubs, spreading, 2-3 m; trunk, when present, to 30 cm. Stem segments not disarticulating, dark green, flattened, subcircular to broadly obovate, 16-25 × 16-19 cm, nearly smooth, glabrous; areoles 8-10 per diagonal across midstem segment, prominent, subcircular, 4.5-5.5 mm, greatly enlarging to 10 mm diam.; wool tan to gray. Spines 5-13 per areole, in most areoles, usually reflexed, translucent yellow, aging red-brown, angular, curved, subulate, the longest 20-25(-50) mm. Glochids in rather dense crescent along adaxial margins, increasing in length toward base, subapical tuft poorly developed, tan, aging brown, to 6 mm. Flowers: inner tepals yellow throughout, 25-40 mm; filaments yellow to orange-yellow; anthers yellow; style red; stigma lobes green or light green. Fruits red to red-purple, pale yellow inside, with seed pulp red, subspheric to barrel-shaped, 37-60 × 30-45 mm, juicy, glabrous, spineless; areoles 23-63. Seeds gray-brown, subcircular to semicircular, 3.5-4 mm diam.; girdle protruding to 0.4 mm. 2n = 33 (an abnormal, polyhaploid individual), 66.
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