There’s something kind of human about a mature patch of Opuntia humifusa, the Eastern prickly pear cactus. Maybe it’s the plant’s new growth and round fruits that attach along the cactus’s narrow perimeter — ovals growing out of ovals — that resemble a child’s first drawing of a person or hand. In winter dormancy, the flat pads contract and shrivel like pruney thumbs, able to survive the cold weather by increasing the ratio of glucose to water in their cells, which acts as an antifreeze.

The Outer Cape is the northernmost end of the cactus’s native range on the Eastern seaboard; the plant is considered an endangered species in Massachusetts. O. humifusa grows only in sunny sites with sharp drainage and can sometimes be spotted roadside if you look carefully. The plant’s vibrant yellow blooms are helping to give away its location this week along Route 6 in Truro.