Quiabentia is a small genus of cacti in the family Cactaceae, order Caryophyllales, closely related to the genus Pereskiopsis. It comprises two accepted species: Quiabentia zehntneri, found in Brazil, and Quiabentia verticillata, distributed across Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina.
Plants in this genus are tree-like or bushy xerophytes with a distinctive whorled branching pattern. The branches are fleshy and round, and they bear flat, fleshy leaves that are broadly ovate to spatulate, reaching up to 7 centimetres in length — an unusual trait among cacti, which are typically leafless. Areoles on the stems are armed with glochids and numerous spines.
The flowers are striking, red or pink, and open during the day. They appear at or near the tips of branches and are notable for the presence of leaves, areoles, glochids, and thorns on the flower cup, while lacking a true flower tube. The fruits are elongated, fleshy, and generally smooth, containing large, circular, flattened seeds enclosed in a seed coat.
The genus was first formally described in 1923 by Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose in the appendix to the fourth volume of their landmark work The Cactaceae. The type species is Quiabentia zehntneri.
Distribution
Quiabentia has a disjunct distribution in South America. Quiabentia zehntneri is native to Brazil, while Quiabentia verticillata occurs in Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina.
Taxonomy Notes
The genus was established in 1923 by Britton and Rose in The Cactaceae, vol. 4. It belongs to the family Cactaceae, order Caryophyllales, and is considered closely related to Pereskiopsis. The type species is Quiabentia zehntneri. GBIF recognises the genus as accepted with no recorded authorship string.
