ok guys. my cactus havn't "moved" yet,lolol. look up chelinidea on the web. you get some great pics of the ugly critters crawling on prickly pear cactus.had them last year on a tractor tire full of prickly pears. thought they were blister bugs,no problem. now that tire full is DEAD. even the roots are gone. want to save this last bunch so i don't have to go dig up more. thanks guys

I believe that from old age. It could be a residue if you were misting it but it looks pretty healthy.

Wondering if someone could help identify the possible pest that keeps chewing up my cactus and what I can do about it. Mega thanks

I have holes similar to that in some of my cacti and I could not figure what was causing it. Finally, one evening I saw two male deer poking the cacti with the ends of their antlers- poked holes right through a number of opunitas.