redbird cactus

English

Flowering redbird cactus (Euphorbia tithymaloides)

Etymology

Named for the appearance of its flower clusters, resembling small birds gathered around a birdfeeder.

Noun

redbird cactus (uncountable)

1. devil's backbone (Euphorbia tithymaloides)

   Synonyms: slipperflower, zigzag plant

   • 1998, Robert Stone, Bear and His Daughter: Stories, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, →ISBN, page 61:

     Jungle clung to the canyons, but there were broad expanses of brushland grown with mesquite and agave and flowering redbird cactus.

   • 2012 August 15, Nellie Neal, “Devil's Backbone (Euphorbia tithymaloides)”, in Gardener's Guide to Tropical Plants: Cool Ways to Add Hot Colors, Bold Foliage, and Striking Textures, Cool Springs Press, →ISBN, page 105:

     Some say the flowers of devil's backbone look like cardinals perched around a feeder, each flower a long-tailed red teardrop that gives rise to another common name, red bird cactus.

Hypernyms

• spurge, euphorbia, malvid, fabid, rosid, eudicot, angiosperm, tracheophyte, plant

Translations

Euphorbia tithymaloides — see devil's backbone

References

• redbird cactus on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Euphorbia tithymaloides on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
• Category:Euphorbia tithymaloides on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons