Gymnarrhena

Gymnarrhena
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Gymnarrhenoideae
Tribe: Gymnarrheneae
Genus: Gymnarrhena
Desf.
Species:
G. micrantha
Binomial name
Gymnarrhena micrantha
Synonyms[1]
  • Cryptadia Lindl. ex Endl. (1841)
  • Frankia Steud. (1840)
  • Cryptadia euphratensis Lindl. (1868)
  • Frankia schimperi Steud. (1840)
  • Gymnarrhena balansae Coss. & Durieu ex Coss. & Kralik (1857)

Gymnarrhena is a deviant genus of plants in the family Asteraceae, with only one known species, Gymnarrhena micrantha. It is native to North Africa and the Middle East, as far east as Balochistan. Together with the very different Cavea tanguensis it constitutes the tribe Gymnarrheneae, and in the subfamily Gymnarrhenoideae.[2][3]

Gymnarrhena is a small, flowering, winter annual with a rosette of simple, narrow leaves and flower heads cropped at its heart. It does not contain latex and does not carry spines. Gymnarrhena flowers in March and April.[4] One of the common names in Arabic is كَف الكَلْب meaning "dog's footprint", while in Hebrew it is called מוצנית קטנת-פרחים meaning "small chaff flower".[5][6]

  1. ^ "Gymnarrhena micrantha Desf". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  2. ^ Panero, Jose L.; Funk, Vicki A. (2009), "New tribes in Asteraceae", Phytologia, 91 (3): 568–570
  3. ^ Zhi-Xi Fu; Bo-Han Jiao; Bao Nie; Tiangang Gao (2016). "A comprehensive generic-level phylogeny of the sunflower family: Implications for the systematics of Chinese Asteraceae". Journal of Systematics and Evolution. 54 (4): 416–437. doi:10.1111/jse.12216. S2CID 89115861. Retrieved 2016-01-15.
  4. ^ "Gymnarrhena micrantha | Compositae". Archived from the original on 2010-06-14. Retrieved 2012-05-09.
  5. ^ "Gymnarrhena micrantha". Euromed Plantbase. Retrieved 2016-12-31.
  6. ^ "Gymnarrhena micrantha". Wild Flowers of Israel. Retrieved 2016-12-29.