This is a Southwest Book of the Year, which won 2005 Southwest Book Award. '[A] monumental study' - review of Texas Books. 'A reliable and handy general reference for those with an interest in cacti inside and outside this region. Recommended' - ""Choice"". 'These authors have...provided the world with the much needed scientific clarification on this family of succulent plants that humans have loved and hated for thousands of years' - ""Sida"". 'Information: Wow!...For both lay readers and for researchers looking for lots of data about the cacti of this rich flora, this book offers fascinating details presented in a very readable fashion' - ""Cactus and Succulents Journal"". 'This will be the standard reference for decades to come' - ""Southwest Books of the Year"". Of the 132 species and varieties of cacti in Texas, about 104 of them occur in the fifteen counties of the Trans-Pecos region. This volume includes full descriptions of those many genera, species, and varieties of cacti, with sixty-four maps showing the distribution of each species in the region. The descriptions follow the latest findings of cactus researchers worldwide and include scientific names; common names; identifying characters based on vegetative habit, flowers, fruit, and seeds; identification of flowerless specimens; and, phenology and biosystematics. The introduction - full of details about the biology and morphology of the family Cactaceae, the uses of cacti, and the horticulture and conservation of cacti - is an important reference for general readers. More than three hundred beautiful full-color photographs of the cacti in flower and in fruit, all cross-referenced to their description in the text, highlight the book. A glossary of cactus terms, an exhaustive list of literature, and a thorough index complete the book. A. Michael Powell is professor emeritus of biology and former director and curator of the A Michael Powell Herbarium, Sul Ross State University. James F. Weedin is a professor in biology/geology at the Community College of Aurora, Colorado, and research associate with the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute.