Stenocereus alamosensis (octopus cactus or cina) is a species of cactus native to Mexico.
Stenocereus alamosensis is a shrub-like cactus with bluish-green, columnar, and often arched shoots up to 8 cm in diameter, reaching 2âÂÂ4 meters in height. Its stems have 5âÂÂ8 slightly arched ribs, about 1 cm high. The cactus features 1âÂÂ4 strong, protruding, whitish central spines up to 4.5 cm long, and 11âÂÂ18 whitish marginal spines measuring 1.3âÂÂ2.2 cm. The tubular red flowers bloom during the day, measuring 7âÂÂ10 cm in length and 2âÂÂ3 cm in diameter, with reflexed bracts. The spherical red fruits, typically bare when ripe, have a persistent flower remnant and are 3âÂÂ4.5 cm in diameter.
Native to Sonora and Sinaloa, Mexico, Stenocereus alamosensis grows at altitudes of 0 to 800 meters. It is viviparous (that is, the seeds germinate before leaving the parent plant), apparently an adaptation to living in coastal plains which are prone to flooding.
It was first described as Cereus alamosensis by John Merle Coulter in 1896, with its name referencing its occurrence near the city of ÃÂlamos. In 1979, Arthur Charles Gibson and Karl E. Horak reclassified it under the genus Stenocereus. The Seri people of Sonora call this cactus xasaacoj. The specific epithet, , refers to the plant's occurrence at ÃÂlamos in the Mexican state of Sonora, in northwestern Mexico. Spanish common names include "Cina," "Nacido," "Sina," and "Tasajo."