The species is named after the Arizona botanist Robert Hibbs Peebles.

The spines are mostly corky and flexible but have hard tips and are white or dull in color.

The funnel-shaped yellowish flowers are up to 2.5 centimeters wide blooming from April to May.

The fruit is green, ripening reddish-brown, reaches about a centimeter long, and contain about 5 to 10 dark brown to black seeds .

[5] One subspecies of the plant is federally listed as an endangered species of the U.S.