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greenish -red to brownish -red bases and veins at the end of the branches. The plant grows in <br />alkaline clay soils on sparsely vegetated badlands and Mancos shale. <br />Colorado hookless Cactus <br />The Colorado hookless cactus (Sclerocactus glaucus) is a barrel shaped cactus that ranges from <br />1.2 to 4.8 inches tall, with exceptional plants up to 12 inches tall. Stems range from 1.6 to 3.6 <br />inches in diameter. The stems have 8 to 15 (typically 12 or 13) ribs that extend from the ground <br />to the tip of the plant. Along the ribs are areoles (small, cushion -like areas) with hooked spines <br />radiating out. There are two types of spines, radial and central, defined by the size and position <br />on the plant. The 2 to 12 radial spines are located around the margin of the areole, extending in a <br />plane parallel to the body of the plant. The radial spines are white or gray to light brown. They <br />are up to 0.67 inches long, and less than 0.04 inches in diameter. The one to five central spines <br />(usually three) are 0.5 to 2.0 inches long, are generally longer than radial spines, and extend from <br />the center of the areole. The central spines include abaxial and lateral forms. Abaxial spines are <br />typically single, point toward the top of the plant, and are noticeably bent at the tip at an angle <br />usually less than 90 degrees. Lateral spines are usually present in pairs on either side of the <br />abaxial spine, but are more or less straight and diverge from the abaxial spine at an acute angle <br />(usually 20 to 50 degrees). The flowers are usually funnel- shaped, but sometimes bell- shaped. <br />They usually have pink to violet tepals (petal -like flower parts not differentiated into petals and <br />sepals) with yellow stamens (the male reproductive organ of the flower), and are 1.2 to 2.4 <br />inches long and 1.2 to 2 inches in diameter. The fruit is short, barrel- shaped 0.31 to 0.47 inches <br />wide, and 0.35 to 1.2 inches long. <br />Populations of Colorado hookless cactus occur primarily on alluvial benches (soils deposited by <br />water) along the Colorado and Gunnison Rivers and their tributaries. Colorado hookless cactus <br />generally occurs on gravelly or rocky surfaces on river terrace deposits and lower mesa slopes. <br />Exposures vary, but Colorado hookless cactus is more abundant on south - facing slopes. Soils are <br />usually coarse, gravelly river alluvium above the river flood plains, usually consisting of Mancos <br />shale with volcanic cobbles and pebbles on the surface. Elevations range from 3,900 to 6,000 <br />feet. Associated desert shrubland vegetation includes shadscale (Atriplex confertifolia), galleta <br />grass (Pleuraphis jamesii), black -sage (Artemisia nova), and Indian rice grass (Achnatherum <br />hymenoides). Populations also exist in big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) dominated sites and <br />in the transition zone from sagebrush to pinyon juniper (Pinus edulis and Juniperus <br />osteosperma) communities. <br />Black- Footed ferret <br />The black - footed ferret, (Mustela nigripes), is 18 to 24 inches long, including a 5 to 6 inch tail. It <br />weighs only one - and -a -half to two- and -a -half pounds, with males slightly larger than females. <br />The black - footed ferret is well adapted to its prairie environment. Its color and markings blend so <br />well with grassland soils and plants that it is hard to detect until it moves. It is a slender, wiry <br />animal with a black face mask, black feet, and a black - tipped tail. The rest of its short, sleek fur <br />is a yellow -buff color, lighter on the belly and nearly white on the forehead, muzzle, and throat. <br />It has short legs with large front paws and claws developed for digging. The ferret's large ears <br />8 u <br />