Gundelia tenuisecta

Perennial lactiferous herb with branched stem up to 60 cm. Leaves alternate, pinnatilobate, pinnatipartite, or pinnatisect, spiny. Young shoots with dense arachnoid hairs, leaves possibly losing part of the indumentum later. Synflorescences normally 5 or less, globose or ovoid, up to 60 mm long and up to 40 mm in diameter, consisting of numerous cephaloids. Synflorescence completely covered with arachnoid hairs when young. Bracts spiny, normally exceeding the cephaloids, with a strong terminal spine and up to 5 lateral spines, at times with additional smaller spines in between; very rarely terminal spine markedly elongated. Cephaloid in the middle of the synflorescence consisting of 3 flowers. Corolla widely spreading, externally greenish-brownish to reddish-brownish, internally dark pink, dark red or intensive red. Synflorescence at early maturity with sparse arachnoid hairs, potentially disappearing later. Single fruit complex normally triangular, 10 mm long and 8 mm broad, rarely conical with up to 8 mm diameter ; central flower surrounded with up to 6 mm long spines originating from the involucels, spines of the lateral flowers up to 4 mm.

Endemic.