How does the cactus adapt to its habitat?

Pores: the saguaro can hold its breath during hot, arid days (it closes its pores). It does its breathing at night, when it’s a little more humid. Then during the day it absorbs sunshine and does its photosynthesis. Shape: Many of the larger cacti have geometric shapes. The saguaro looks pleated. read more

Cacti do not have leaves, but instead have a fixed spine. The fixed spine loses less water than leaves, so the plant can photosynthesize throughout the dry season. Cacti have very shallow roots to soak up water immediately after rainfall, and they also have thick, expandable stems to store all of the water they absorb from the ground. read more

The famous spines of a cactus are an adaptation which minimizes the surface area when compared to the more ubiquitous leaves of other plants. These spines also protect the cactus from the trespasses of herbivores. Encyclopedia Britannica states that cacti are flowering plants, with more than 2,000 species spread across North and South America. read more