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The Music of Organ Pipes
Mon Dec 19, 2005
Listen in RealAudio 
Hi, I’m Bryan Yeaton for The Weather Notebook. There is an odd-looking cactus in the Sonoran Desert called the Organ Pipe. Sue Rutman, botanist at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Arizona, tells us about it.
Organ Pipe Cacti are one of three what we call “columnar cactus.” They’re tall, and they have a lot of bulk to them. It is one of the columnar cacti that has many stems that arise from the base, or the ground level, so it looks like a cluster of stems.
BY: So, what’s the scientific name for Organ Pipe?
SR: Stenocereus thurberi.
BY: Okay
One of the ways, according to Rutman, that Organ Pipes differ from the better-known saguaros, is the climate in which they grow.
Saguaros are a little more tolerant of cold than Organ Pipe are. And Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, the Odham reservation, are at a fairly low elevation, and they’re at a fairly low latitude, also. So this is a warmer and drier section of the desert than the rest of the Sonoran Desert.
Although they extend well into Mexico, Organ Pipes barely sneak over the border into the U.S.
Almost all of the saguaros are found in pretty much the southern third, or maybe southern half, of Arizona. Organ Pipes, on the other hand, are only found in extreme southern Arizona… mostly on Organ Pipe and the Tohono O’Odham Nation; we have almost 90 percent of the Organ Pipe Cactus in the United States.
Rutman says the Organ Pipe flowers and fruits are vital to many desert animals, like birds and bats.
Organ Pipe and saguaro fruit are very, very important for providing sugar and water to animals during a time of the year when they need it the most.
The Weather Notebook is supported by Subaru of America.
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