| Synonyms: |
Aspilia eylesii S. Moore Aspilia zombensis Baker Melanthera albinervia O. Hoffm. subsp. acuminata (S. Moore) Wild Melanthera pungens Oliv. & Hiern var. albinervia (O. Hoffm.) Beentje |
| Common names: | |
| Frequency: | |
| Status: | Native |
| Description: |
Bushy perennial herb to 1.2 m. Leaves: lamina ovate, oblong to elliptic, scabrid; margin coarsely serrate to dentate. Capitula terminal, solitary or in few-headed cymes, becoming ± spherical in fruit. Ray florets 6-20, 6-11 mm, yellow to orange. Achenes 1-2.8 mm, ellipsoid, 3-4-angled. Pappus of 1(-2) quickly deciduous bristles. |
| Type location: |
Angola |
| Notes: | |
| Derivation of specific name: | pungens: piercing, sharp-pointed, perhaps referring to the bristle-like apices of the inner phyllaries. |
| Habitat: | |
| Altitude range: (metres) | |
| Flowering time: | |
| Worldwide distribution: | Angola, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Caprivi-Namibia and Mpumalanga South Africa |
| FZ divisions: | N,W,E,S |
| Zambian distribution (Provinces): | Nw,Cb,N,E,Lk,S |
| Growth form(s): | |
| Endemic status: | |
| Red data list status: | |
| Insects associated with this species: | |
| Spot characters: | Display spot characters for this species |
| Literature: |
Beentje, H.J. & Ghazanfar, S.A. (eds.) (2005). Compositae (Part 3) Flora of Tropical East Africa Pages 741 - 742. As Melanthera pungens var pungens and var. albinervia Burrows, J.E. & Willis, C.K. (eds) (2005). Plants of the Nyika Plateau Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 31 SABONET, Pretoria Page 101. (Includes a picture). Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 26. Ntore, S. & al. (2024). Checklist of the vascular plants of Burundi Page 69. Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 35. Wild, H. (1965). The African species of the genus Melanthera Rohr Kirkia 5(1) Pages 11 - 12. Wild, H. (1967). The Compositae of the Flora Zambesiaca area. 1. Heliantheae. Kirkia 6(1) Pages 52 - 53. |