Escobaria, pincushion cactus or foxtail cactus is a genus of low-growing cacti that range from the southernmost parts of central and western Canada through northern Mexico, with one species in Cuba. The genus comprises about 23 species. The term "pincushion cactus" may also refer to the related Mammillaria. Common species include the Missouri foxtail cactus E. missouriensis, widespread in grassland and forest west of the Mississippi, and the spinystar E. vivipara, distributed across the US and into Canada, first described by Nuttall in 1813.