Opuntia semispinosa Griffiths 1916
Opuntia littoralis var. austrocalifornica L. D. Benson & Walkington 1965
Opuntia littoralis (Engelmann) Cockerell 1905
Coast prickly pear, sprawling prickly pear
The coastal prickly pear is a native of northern Baja California and southern California. It is a common sight in the Laguna Beach area.
See this Opuntia comparison table.
Plants: These cacti are low 12–24″ (30–60 cm) and shrublike, and have some long, rigid spines, as well as short, hairlike spines called glochids. It is the short ones, which detach easily, that can be painful and difficult to remove. Stem segments are roughly oval in shape, 2½–12 ⨉ 1¾–4″ (7–30 ⨉ 5–10 cm).
Flowers: Yellow or orange-yellow, sometimes with some red, sometimes red or shades of purple.
Fruits: Purplish red, 1¼–1¾″ (3.5–5 cm) long.
Habitats: Common near the coast, at low elevations, occuring inland as far as 40.0 mi (64 km).
Edibility: Fruits, called tunas, are edible.
Coastal prickly pear fruit, from the Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Berkeley, CA. By Stan Shebs. 
References:
Online References:
Opuntia engelmannii var. littoralis Engelmann 1876
Opuntia semispinosa Griffiths 1916
Opuntia littoralis var. austrocalifornica L. D. Benson & Walkington 1965
Opuntia semispinosa Griffiths 1916
Opuntia littoralis var. austrocalifornica L. D. Benson & Walkington 1965
2/26/2010 · Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, La Jolla, California · ≈ 13 × 10″ (31 × 25 cm) 
2/24/2010 · San Diego (Quail) Botanic Garden, Encinitas, California 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Caryophyllidae | Cacti, many other succulents, carnivorous plants, and leadworts |
| Order | Caryophyllales | Includes cacti, carnations, amaranths, ice plants, and many carnivorous plants |
| Family | Cactaceae | Succulent (water-storing) plants, often spiny |
| Genus | Opuntia | Prickly pears |
| Species | littoralis | Of the seashore |
Opuntia littoralis description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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