Scientific taxonomy article
Accepted name and publication history
The accepted name in the current Kew backbone is Mammillaria pectinifera F.A.C.Weber. It was published in 1898 in volume two of D. G. J. Bois's Dictionnaire d'Horticulture.12 Historical names in Pelecyphora, Solisia, Neomammillaria, and Lactomamillaria are not current canonical names; they document the nomenclatural history of the species.
Systematic position and taxon boundary
In the live Kaktüs Doktoru backbone, the species is a child of the genus Mammillaria; the genus is attached directly to Cactaceae and the family to Caryophyllales. This package updates only the species node. Kew's 2026 backbone continues to accept Mammillaria pectinifera; recent transfers affecting other Mammillaria groups are not evidence for automatically renaming this species.1
The most conspicuous diagnostic feature is the comb-like arrangement of short white radial spines flattened around each areole. The small, depressed-globose stem and growth close to the ground are also useful. A single commercial photograph is not a voucher, however; stem, areoles, spine pattern, flowers, and provenance should be evaluated together.
Native distribution
Kew restricts the native range to the Mexican states of Puebla and Oaxaca.1 Ecological and genetic studies associate the species with the Tehuacán–Cuicatlán Valley, where a narrow distribution, small fragmented populations, and habitat pressure shape its conservation assessment.34 Earlier live text listing San Luis Potosí, Querétaro, Jalisco, Colima, Guerrero, and Mexico City will not be retained as verified native distribution.
Conservation evidence
The IUCN 2022.2 record for taxon 152693 reports EN — Endangered.5 Mexico's NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010 lists the endemic species as A — Amenazada, and international trade is controlled under CITES Appendix I.63 These systems are not interchangeable and must be described as separate evidence layers.
Field studies document low growth, a long life cycle, habitat fragmentation, and evidence of recent bottlenecks and heterozygote deficiency in some populations.34 The previous live LC field will therefore be replaced by the sourced EN category while national and trade-protection evidence remains explicit in metadata and prose.
Synonymy
Kew lists four heterotypic synonyms. Lactomamillaria aselliformoides Frič was not validly published; Pelecyphora pectinata Stein, Solisia pectinata (Stein) Britton & Rose, and Neomammillaria pectinata (Stein) Fosberg are historical names.1 Synonymy supports search and nomenclatural history; the canonical route follows the accepted name Mammillaria pectinifera.
References
- Plants of the World Online. “Mammillaria pectinifera F.A.C.Weber.” Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Accessed: 2026-08-04. https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:134947-1 ↩
- International Plant Names Index. “Mammillaria pectinifera F.A.C.Weber.” Accessed: 2026-08-04. https://www.ipni.org/n/134947-1 ↩
- Valverde, P. L. et al. “Assessment of extinction risk of Mammillaria pectinifera.” Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad 80: 219–230. https://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S1870-34532009000100024&script=sci_arttext ↩
- Maya-García, R. et al. “Landscape genetics reveals inbreeding and genetic bottlenecks in Mammillaria pectinifera.” Plant Diversity 39(1): 13–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pld.2016.09.005 ↩
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.2. “Mammillaria pectinifera”, taxon 152693. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/152693/666720 ↩
- Diario Oficial de la Federación. NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, Mammillaria pectinifera. https://www.dof.gob.mx/normasOficiales/4254/semarnat/semarnat.htm ↩
