prickly pear

This term refers specifically to the Opuntia genus of cacti. While the name emphasizes the spines, the term is frequently used in culinary and agricultural contexts to refer to the fruit (tuna) or the pads (nopales) used in cooking, particularly in Mexican and Southwestern US cuisines.

Because this is a compound noun referring to a biological species, it follows standard countability rules for plants. However, when referring to the fruit specifically, it is often used interchangeably with the term prickly pear fruit to avoid ambiguity between the plant and its produce.