It is difficult to imagine a more evocative botanical symbol of the Sonoran desert than the Saguaro cactus. Towering above other plants and animals around it, branching arms raised toward the sky in a posture reminiscent of the human gesture of both prayer and blessing, this giant of the Cactaceae family hold pride of place in both the ecology, as well as the mythology of post pre- and post-colonial human inhabitants, of the region.
Now, thanks to the combined efforts of David Yetman, Alberto Búrquez, Kevin Hultine, Michael Sanderson, and the University of Arizona Press, all those curious to learn more about this iconic plant from both the botanical as well as ethnobotanical perspective can turn to the new The Saguaro Cactus; A Natural History.
Part of the Southwest Center Series, which also includes such noteworthy titles as Plant Life of a Desert Archipelago; Flora of the Sonoran Islands in the Gulf of California and Amphibians, Reptiles, and Their Habitats at Sabino Canyon, The Saguaro Cactus presents the history of the species’ discovery, taxonomy, ecology, anatomy and physiology, genetics, and – as previously noted – ethnobotany, ensuring that from whichever angle a reader approaches this book, they will very likely find a pathway into it and thenceforth to a much greater understanding of this remarkable cactus by its conclusion.
