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Functions of cactus spines?
To injure animals that may be predators of the cactus, e.g. try to eat it! If an animal goes to eat the cactus, it will spike them and they will not eat it again. Also it absorbs and stores moisture from the air for the cactus, so it can be utilized in hot conditions.
Why do animals not eat cactus?
About the only cactus eaten by some animals is the prickly pear. Some small rodents will eat it as well as rabbits and hares, javelinas, deer, pronghorn, bighorn sheep. It is frequently a food of desperation during times of intense drought when all other plants are gone.
The benefits of cactus spines are similar to the benefits of what?
The benefits of cactus spines are similar to the benefits of the thorns and the leavesof herbaceous plants. The spines act the part of thorns in their defense of the cactus plant's stem, growth buds, and breathing pores. They act the part of leaves in their channeling of any available moisture - be it dew, fog, or rainfall - down to the immediate ground around the cactus. From the ground surface, the drops seep into the soil, to be added to the water table or taken in by the cactus plant's roots.
Why are spines the leaves of cactus plant?
Can be used for rainsticks. The spines are pushed to the inside of the hollow cactus and shells are put in making the sound of rain when inverted. Spines pushed in so the shells don't fall too fast.
Why does a cactus have spiny leaves?
It is an adaptation and a form of leaves, except that they are spines. It is either for protection from animals sucking its internal "juice", or it is for preventing dessication (drying out).
Who eats cacti?
Some cacti are edible such as a prickly pear cactus. Their pads and fruit's spines can be removed or burned off to eat. Some cacti however aren't edible such as the teddy bear cactus due to its spines which are heavily distriputed across the plant.
How do you eat a cactus pear?
The exterior skin must be scraped off since it contains spines and will irritate your lips and mouth. After that is can be eaten or used to make candies and preserves.
Does a desert tortoise eat the barrel cactus?
Barrel cactus plants eat dissolved nutrientsfrom the soil. The nutrients tend to be minerals and trace elements. They also eat photosynthetic products, such as energizing starches and sugars.Plants do not "eat", they absorb minerals and water from the soil and metabolize them together with sunlight (photosynthesis) to form simple sugars which provide energy for the plant
What are the spines on the cactus and why are they important?
ShelchavCactus spines are actually modified leaves. It helps if you think of cactus as a large stem with leaves (spines). One of the main functions of the spines is fairly obvious, which is to protect cacti from predators such as animals and people. Spines will turn away most animals, but there are a few that are not put off by prickly spines. These animals include javelina, pack rats, desert tortoises and even Desert Bighorn sheep.Saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea)A major function of cactus spines serve to provide protection for the cactus from the sun. At first, it is hard to believe that tiny cactus spines offer any real protection from the intense desert sun. But when you consider that a cactus can have thousands of spines and each spine provides a small amount of shade and multiply that by 1,000 - well it becomes easier to believe that spines really do offer some protection from the sun for the skin of the cactus.
Do grasshopper eat cactus?
Yes, a grasshopper will eat from a cactus if that is all they have to eat. Grasshoppers are herbivores so they eat plants.
Why can animals not eat a cactus?
Many cacti are covered with dense spines that discourage animals from feeding on them. Some contains drugs and toxins that make them unpalatable. However, the prickly pear cactus is used as a food source by a number of animals, including the javelina.
What desert animal eats cacti?
In the United States, javelina and deer will eat prickly pear cacti. Some insects and a few rodents as well as the desert tortoise may dine on cacti.I do not know of any animals that eat cacti, on account of their spines, however, some bats, bees, and probably butterflies eat cactus nectar, and various animals may eat their fruit. Humans, however, do eat edible cacti, because they can cut off the spines. An example of an edible cacti is the prickly pear cactus.Deer and rabbits eat the cactus flowerbuds...
