Fouquieria splendens Engelm.

Ocotillo, coachwhip, Jacob’s staff, vine cactus

About plant names...

Ocotillos spend much of their time looking like giant dead rosebushes, but they’re just biding their time. Given some moisture, they sprout large numbers of tiny leaves and beautiful stark red flowers. They are native to the Mojave and Colorado deserts, the southwestern US, Baja California, and Sonora Mexico, at elevations below 5000' (1.5 km).

Ocotillos have near doppelgängers called Madagascar ocotillo. These closely similar plants are an example of convergent evolution, where unrelated plants sometimes evolve to fill identical ecological niches in different locations. But you won’t confuse them, since, as you have probably guessed, Madagascar ocotillo grows only in Madagascar.

Identification: Ocotillo (pronounced awk-oh-TEE-oh) is a collection of tall, thin, unbranched stalks up to 20' (6.1 m) high, facing mostly upward but sometimes looking bowed as if bowing to the wind. The branches have thorns about ½-1" (1.3-2.5 cm) long, and sometimes have tiny leaves. Flowers, in clusters about 10" (25 cm) long, and fruits appear near the top. Ocotillo’s size and shape is unmistakable. It is found in association with mesquite, creosotebush, paloverde, and ceniza.

Photo by David Corby

Online References:

Fouquieria splendens on

Fouquieria splendens on Vascular Plants of the Gila Wilderness

Fouquieria splendens on Desert-tropicals.com

Fouquieria splendens on the USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database

Fouquieria splendens on Wikipedia

Fouquieria splendens on cals.arizona.edu

Fouquieria splendens at Southeastern Arizona Wildflowers and the Plants of the Sonoran Desert

Fouquieria splendens from the Jepson Manual

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 5 × 8" (13 × 19 cm)

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 4½ × 7" (11 × 17 cm)

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

5/2/2018 · Ocotillo Patch, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 12 × 8" (31 × 20 cm)

Black-throated Sparrow · 5/24/2009 · Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, Ari­zona ID is uncertain

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

5/2/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 7 × 4½" (18 × 12 cm)

5/24/2009 · Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, Ari­zona
≈ 3 × 4½' (94 × 141 cm)

5/2/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 9 × 7" (22 × 16 cm)

5/10/2014 · American Southwest (AZ or TX) · By Jacquelyn Boyt

Fouquieria splendens description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.

5/1/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park Visitor Center, Twentynine Palms, Cali­fornia
≈ 8 × 9" (20 × 22 cm)

5/1/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park Visitor Center, Twentynine Palms, Cali­fornia
≈ 21 × 31" (52 × 78 cm)

5/2/2018 · Ocotillo Patch, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 10 × 7" (24 × 16 cm)

2/17/2007 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 33 × 31" (84 × 78 cm)

5/24/2009 · Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, Ari­zona
≈ 4½ × 6½' (1.4 × 2 m)

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

5/2/2018 · Bajada Trail, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 6 × 4" (15 × 10 cm)

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

5/24/2009 · Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, Ari­zona
≈ 25 × 37" (62 × 93 cm)

2/17/2007 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

5/2/2018 · Cottonwood Visitor Center, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 9 × 7" (22 × 16 cm)

5/2/2018 · Ocotillo Patch, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia
≈ 7 × 10" (16 × 24 cm)

Range:

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