This walking cactus is also known as the ‘creeping devil’ cactus, and some call it the walking cactus of Baja California Sur. This is a type of cactus or one of the most interesting succulents on the planet.
This cactus is very nice, neat and attracts many fans of ornamental plant lovers. It is even reported that succulent enthusiasts will pay thousands of dollars on the black market to have this succulent in their home.
Stenocereus Eruca: The Walking Cactus Of Baja California Sur
This cactus does not grow upright like other cacti, but it grows lying on the ground like a creep so it is also called a “demon creep”. But it is getting more and more similar to a walking devil when we look at its tip which looks a little erect like the head of a creeping person.
This cactus or succulent grows together with hundreds of stems, so when we look at it, it looks like they are taking a nap together.
The growth of devil cactus like this above the ground will be disturbing for livestock that are grazing, this is because they have thorns all over their bodies. They grew parallel to the ground, and crawled together like they were covering the ground.
Sometimes if the growth is very large, this succulent can also be a very strong barrier and cannot be penetrated by humans. for this reason, sometimes farmers destroy them entirely. I wonder why they destroyed them, when these baby succulents on the black market sell for thousands of dollars. Maybe they don’t know that the price is so high!
Also, farmers discard these cacti and eradicate them to prepare the land for their agriculture. One of the reasons is that it robs the soil of nutrients apart from taking up a lot of space and land for their creeping growth. Soil nutrients will be lost, whereas farmers want to grow vegetables that can generate a lot of money for them.
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How The Creeping Devil Got Its Nickname
This is a rare cactus succulent and fascinates when observed carefully. Why this cactus plant is called a creeping devil, this is because of the way it grows like a creeping devil, it can clone itself to survive, and can detach itself from the top of the plant and move through the desert from time to time. We can call it a walking plant, by releasing itself from the original stem, it continues to move over time.
Creeping devil plants can grow quickly in cold climates and can even grow twice a year. This will produce a colony of thorny stems that are large and difficult or even impenetrable.
If this plant is planted in an area with a dry climate, its growth will slow down and it can only grow twice in a decade. They survive by cloning themselves so it is not easy to become extinct.
How Do Walking Cactuses “Walk?”
This succulent grows parallel to the ground, the stem begins to root towards the tip, and when attached to the ground with strong roots, then the old body dies. The old part rots and this will become the nutrients that can help the growth of the new stem.
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This is how this cactus walks across the desert from time to time. We can say something like “the walking cactus must die to survive”.
Where Are The ‘Creeping Devils’ Headed To?
The walking cactus or creeping devil cactus is endemic to the Baja California Sur area of northwest Mexico. It is the only known walking cactus species in the world.
It grows creeping and level to the ground, this low growth pattern plays a major role in maintaining its survival.
This walking cactus crawls, walks and migrates all the time from desert to desert over long periods of time. Jaid, we don’t know where this plant movement is going. In addition, this unique and beautiful plant will become extinct if we do not start preserving it.
