Pariette cactus - Sclerocactus brevispinus is a barrel-shaped cactus that ranges from 2.5 to 8 centimeters (cm) (1.0 to 3.1 inches (in.)) tall. Sclerocactus brevispinus is a morphologically unique Sclerocactus, with flowering adults that are much smaller than either S. glaucus or S. wetlandicus. S. brevispinus has stems with typically 13 ribs that extend from the ground to the tip of the plant. Along the ribs are areoles (small, cushion-like areas) with hooked spines (Heil and Porter 2004). There are three types of spines, radial and central, defined by the size and position on the plant (74 FR 47112, September 15, 2009). The 5 to 13 radial spines are located around the margin of the areole, extending in a plane parallel to the body of the plant. The radial spines are white or gray to light brown, and are 5 to 15 millimeters (mm) (0.2 to 0.6 in.) long. The 0 to 3 central spines are 2 to 5 mm (0.08 to 0.2 in.) long and extend from the center of the areole. The central spines include abaxial and lateral forms. Abaxial spines are typically single and are strongly hooked with the tip almost touching the surface of the areole. Lateral spines are usually absent, but when present are on either side of the abaxial spine, are more or less straight without the obvious bend or hook, and form an acute angle with the abaxial spine (usually 20 to 50 degrees). The bell-shaped flowers usually have pink tepals (petal-like flower parts not differentiated into petals and sepals) and yellow stamens (the male reproductive organ of the flower), and are 1 to 1.5 cm (0.4 to 0.6 in.) long and 1.2 to 3 cm (0.4 to 1.2 in.) wide (74 FR 47112, September 15, 2009). The fruit is short, barrel-shaped, reddish or reddish grey when ripe, 7 to 12 mm (0.3 to 0.5 in.) wide, and 9 to 25 mm (0.35 to 1.0 in.) long.