Peter Beiersdorfer, Jaan K. Lepson, Hilde Mouton, Frikkie Mouton
Cactus and Succulent Journal 95 (1), 18-26, (13 March 2023) https://doi.org/10.2985/015.095.0104
We have found a string of colonies of L. francisci (Dinter & Schwantes) N. E. Brown that appear to abruptly change into a string of colonies of L. karasmontana subsp. eberlanzii (Dinter & Schwantes) D.T. Cole. The separation between each colony is between 50 and 300 m, and the separation between the last L. francisci colony and the first L. karasmontana ssp. eberlanzii colony is 240 m. We expect that neighboring colonies interact with each other, including the closest L. francisci and L. karasmontana subsp. eberlanzii colonies. However, no obvious hybrids were noted in this area, possibly because the on-going drought has severely desiccated the plants, killing typically over half of the plants in these and several other colonies.