Crepis

Crepis
Crepis jacquinii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Cichorioideae
Tribe: Cichorieae
Subtribe: Crepidinae
Genus: Crepis
L.
Species

about 200, see text

Crepis, commonly known in some parts of the world as hawksbeard or hawk's-beard (but not to be confused with the related genus Hieracium with a similar common name), is a genus of annual and perennial flowering plants of the family Asteraceae superficially resembling the dandelion, the most conspicuous difference being that Crepis usually has branching scapes with multiple heads (though solitary heads can occur). The genus name Crepis derives from the Greek krepis, meaning "slipper" or "sandal", possibly in reference to the shape of the fruit.[1]

The genus is distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere and Africa,[2] and several plants are known as introduced species practically worldwide.[1] The center of diversity is in the Mediterranean.[2]

  1. ^ a b Crepis. Flora of North America.
  2. ^ a b Enke N., Gemeinholzer B. (2008). "Babcock revisited: New insights into generic delimitation and character evolution in Crepis L. (Compositae: Cichorieae) from ITS and matK sequence data". Taxon. 57 (3): 756–68. doi:10.1002/tax.573008.