The various forms of Agave parryi – part 7

Wim Alsemgeest en Jos van Roosbroeck.

A closer look at:   A. gracilipes

A gracilipes was first described in 1911 (publ.1912) by Trelease.. The distribution is the most north easterly side of the A. parryi . and extends  from the Guadalupe Mountains  of south eastern New Mexico  through the western Big Bend of Texas  southward  to Chihuahua, to the latitude  of Sueco  and San Buenaventura . In western Texas it grows together with A. parryi ssp.neomexicana and A. lechuguilla,. There are two good pictures accompanying the description. Here you can see that the leaves of the plants are much more acuminate. The teeth on the margins are widely spaced.   There is a nice picture in Clive Innes' book "The Complete Handbook of Cacti and Succulents", (1977: p. 47). As far as we can tell the picture was taken in a botanical garden. This plant however looks very much like A. parryi subsp .neomexicana.
Tony L. Burgus' article," Agave-Complex of the Guadalupe Mountains National Park; Putative Hybridization between Members of Different Subgenera (1973)", states that the difference between the two is based simply on leaf appearances. Gentry described differences in the flower tube and noted that the flowers stalk was smaller (See picture Gentry page 536).  Burgus and, later, Bernd Ullrich came to the conclusion that A. gracilipes is a hybrid between A. neomexicana and  A. lechuguilla.
In the new book “Agaves; magueyes, lechuguillas y noas den Estado the Durango 209", on page 85, you can see a picture of total different agave .The site is Inde in Durango. In 2011 we found this species on the way from Santa Maria Del Oro to La puerta de Cabrera, not far from Inde.  As far as we know this is a new species and nothing to do with A. parry or also a Hybrid.  further research is necessary.

To be continued:

Back to article overview