CREPIS RUBRA

Family:- COMPOSITAE/Sect. BARKHOUSIA

Common Names:- Pink hawksbeard

Synonyms:- None

Meaning:- Crepis (Gr) A name used by Greek philosopher Theophrastus.

Rubra (L) Red.

General description:- Low to medium, hairy annual.

Stems:-

1) 1 to many, 4-40 cm, simple or with 1 branch.

Leaves:-

1) With pale simple eglandular hairs.

2) Basal, 2-15 x 0·5-3 cm, few to many, oblanceolate, acute, narrowed to the base,

denticulate, dentate or runcinate-pinnatifid, with triangular or lanceolate,

acute segments.

3) Cauline, few mostly bract-like, the lower sometimes like the basal.

Flowers:-

1) Capitula, 1 or 2. Involucre 11-15 x 4-10 mm.

2) Outer bracts, lanceolate acute, pale or scarious, c. ½ as long as the inner,

glabrous or puberulent.

3) Inner bracts, linear-lanceolate, acute or obtuse, pale at margin, with numerous,

long and short, pale glandular hairs.

4) Ligules pink or white.

Fruit:-

1) Achenes dark brown, fusiform, of 2 kinds:

a) marginal 8·5-9 mm, gradually attenuate into a usually short beak, c. 10-

ribbed,

coarsely and strongly spinulose.

b) inner 12-21 mm, gradually attenuate into a long, rather slender beak, 15- to

20-ribbed, spinulose.

Key features:-

1) Leaves not divided to the midrib, the segments, if present, not narrowly linear.

2) Achenes of 2 or 3 kinds.

3) Ligules pink or white.

Click here for a glossary of terms used.

Habitat:- Seasonally damp meadows, fallow fields, woodland openings, etc. 0-1000

(-1400) m.

Distribution:- Fairly common on mainland Greece and Ionian Islands S Italy, W

Balkans Peninsula. and Crete. Scattered across Crete, not too common.

Flowering time:- Late Mar to early June.

Photos by:- Steve Lenton