Bloomipedia
Chain-fruit cholla (Cylindropuntia fulgida)
Photo: Luke via iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0 · resized

Flower profile

Chain-fruit cholla

Cylindropuntia fulgida

Chain-fruit cholla (Cylindropuntia fulgida) is a shrub or small tree in the Cactaceae family, native in the lower 48 states, blooming mostly May–September across the U.S.

Native to Arizona

Chain-fruit cholla is a flowering plant that USDA PLANTS lists as native in the lower 48 states. In Arizona it's most often seen in bloom in May–September.

3states where USDA records it
11,188AZ sightings*
11,208U.S. sightings*

*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.

On our lists for: Arizona

Quick look

Cylindropuntia fulgida, known as the jumping cholla or hanging chain cholla, is a cholla (Cylindropuntia) cactus native to Sinaloa and Sonora in Mexico, to as far as Arizona on the north in the Southwestern United States.

  • It belongs to the Cactaceae family. iNaturalist
  • USDA PLANTS describes it as a shrub / a tree with a perennial life cycle. USDA PLANTS
  • USDA PLANTS lists it as native in the lower 48 states and records it in 3 states. USDA PLANTS
  • NatureServe lists it as native to Arizona. NatureServe
  • In Arizona, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in May–September. iNaturalist
  • iNaturalist has 11,188 research-grade sightings of it in Arizona, ranking #5 among the 132 flowers on our Arizona list. iNaturalist

When does it bloom?

In Arizona, most flowering sightings come in May–September.

Flowering records by month in Arizona (iNaturalist research-grade observations marked “Flowering”) (165 records)

Conservation status

Federal (U.S. ESA)
Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. USFWS ECOS
NatureServe global
G4 Apparently secure worldwide. NatureServe
Arizona
Not listed Not on Arizona Native Plant Law protected plants (Ariz. Admin. Code R3-3 Art. 11, App. A, eff. Feb. 2, 2025). NatureServe: SNR, not yet ranked in Arizona. AAC R3-3 App. A
Rare elsewhere
No other U.S. state ranks it S1, S2, SH or SX.

Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.

Can you eat it?

For peopleNot well documented

None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.

For petsNot well documented

It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.

🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.

Where does it grow?

USDA PLANTS records chain-fruit cholla in 3 states.

recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded

See the full list of states

Arizona, California, New Mexico.

Arizona counties with USDA records: Cochise, Gila, Graham, La Paz, Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, Yavapai, Yuma.

Names, range and relatives

County records: USDA PLANTS lists it in 11 counties across 2 states; the most are in Arizona (10), New Mexico (1).

Other Cylindropuntia on Bloomipedia (6): Christmas cholla, Silver cholla, Tree cholla, Buckhorn cholla, Teddybear cholla, Branched pencil cholla.

More from the Cactaceae family (37 on Bloomipedia; most observed first): Saguaro, California barrel cactus, Beavertail pricklypear, Plains pricklypear, Fishhook barrel cactus, Spinystar, Graham's nipple cactus, Mountain ball cactus.

More Arizona flowers

Saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea)

Saguaro

Carnegiea gigantea

★ AZ state flowerNative

🌼 Blooms in AZ: April–June
Fishhook barrel cactus (Ferocactus wislizeni)

Fishhook barrel cactus

Ferocactus wislizeni

Native

🌼 Blooms in AZ: August–September
Graham's nipple cactus (Cochemiea grahamii)

Graham's nipple cactus

Cochemiea grahamii

🌼 Blooms in AZ: March–July

Sources