This cactus does well at the river.Opuntia at the River

I have only seen this white Cochineal on prickly pear at the river.  It is a bug that feeds upon but does not kill the cactus.  Scraped off and dried, the web, insects and eggs are processed to make a red dye.  Tons of this were shipped back to Spain in the 1500’s.  Today the dye is popular in lipstick.  (Note: cactus are a New World plant and did not exist in Europe until the discovery of the Americas.)Cochineal on Pickly Pear

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