Calotis cymbacantha

Calotis cymbacantha, the showy burr daisy, is a species of Calotis native to the arid areas of Australia. It is a perennial herb that grows between 10 and 40 cm tall. It has hairy erect stems which are woody at the base and produces yellow flowers (Seeds of South Australia, 2018) (Victoria Flora, 2018).

Showy burr daisy
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Calotis
Species:
C. cymbacantha
Binomial name
Calotis cymbacantha

Description

Petals: Bright yellow petals, with 18-30 per flower head being 5 mm long and 1.5 mm wide. The flowers have a yellow centre borne on leafy slender stalks (Cunningham et al. 1992). Leaves: Oblong leaves that are between 10-65 mm long and 7-15 mm in width. Seeds: Obovate, flat and warty on each face, 2-3 mm long. They are boat-shaped towards the base. Flowers: August- October. (Seeds of South Australia, 2018), (Cunningham et al. 1992).


History

The species was first described by Ferdinand von Mueller. He was a botanist that was appointed chief botanist for the colony of Victoria in 1853. He discovered many Australian plants, including the showy burr daisy (Morris, 1974).

Distribution

Found in areas of sandy plains and arid areas (Cunningham et al., 1992)(Seeds of Australia, 2018). It is found mostly within the west of New South Wales, although it is distributed also to the south of Victoria and South Australia (Cunningham et al. 1992).

It lives within sparse mulga, black blue bush and other shrub communities within the sandplains and dune fields (Cunningham et al. 1992).

Name meaning

The genus name, Calotis, comes from the Greek word kalos meaning beautiful. The specific name, cymbacantha, comes from the Greek word kymbe meaning boat and akantha meaning thorn and spine which refers to the boat-shaped shape of the seed (Morris, 1974),(Seeds of South Australia. 2018).

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References
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