Launaea angustifolia (Desf.) Kuntze

Family: Asteraceae
Flowering Time: Feb-Apr.

General Appearance

Launaea angustifolia (Desf.) Kuntze / Heterotypic Synonyms:  Launaea angustifolia ssp. arabica (Boiss.) N.Kilian , Launaea foxii (Post) Eig, it is an annual or biennial, erect, herbaceous, up to 3-20 (-25) cm, glabrous. Stems 1-few, simple or branched above. Leaves mostly basal. Basal leaves (10-) 25-80 mm. oblong lanceolate in outline, pectinate-pinnatifid, attenuate at base into a short, winged petiole; lobes oblong, acute, margins and apex with white, callous, distant teeth. Cauline leaves similar, smiler, sessile auriculate. Capitula solitary, terminal or rarely few in lax corymb on the end of long peduncles, broadly ovate to sub globose. Peduncles up to 6 cm, with few peduncular bracts. Peduncular bracts 1.5-2.5 mm. ovate, clasping the peduncle. Involucre 10-13 x 8 x 10 mm. broadly ovoid to sub globose. InvolucraI bracts herbaceous. Outer involucral bracts 2.5-4 x 2.0-3.5 mm. ovate to nearly suborbicular, margins undulate but not distinctly scarious, obtusely white or brownish callous-tipped. Inner involucral bracts 8-12 (-13) x 3-4.5 mm. ovate to elliptic-oblong; margins narrowly brown, scarious; apex obtuse with or without a white callous apical appendage. Cypsela 2-2.5 mm. shorty winged at angles, obscurely 5-6 ribbed. transversely finely rugose and silky hairy; base with 4, obtuse, small teeth; wings less than 1 mm wide, ± hirsute; apex truncate; peripheral cypsela dorsally convex; inner cypsela ± irregularly 4-angled; pappus 5-5.5 mm. silky hairy, brownish-white, with a distinct, dark coloured basal annular ring, persistent.

Life Form

Th

Phytochoria

SA. The native range of this species is S. & E. Medit. to S. Iraq and Arabian Peninsula.

Distribution in Libya

Zliten-Misurata Plain:  Al-Kararim 1968

Jabal Nafusa:  Wadi Kabau 1972  Omm–ramal 1974 Shakshok 1976  Msallata (Shaafien) 2017  Wadi Kaam 2017

Al-Jabal Al-Akhder:  Valley Jarjr-oma 2013

Al-Hamada Al-Hamra:  Reported from Al-Hamada area in Tinghert near Ghadames by Durand & Barratte

Al-Jufra area:  Gara Al-Tifrani, (23 km) from Weshka 1975

First: Encyclopedia Flora of Libyan:

Jafri, S. M. H. & El-Gadi, A. (1983) Flora of Libya, Asteraceae Vol. (107) Department of Botany, Al-Faateh Univ., Tripoli, Libya.

Second: Researches and PhD theses, master theses, Sorted by Newest:

Bahri, N.M. (2017) Identify, Limit and Determine the Vegetation Types of Wadi Ka’am Areas, Libya. Journal of Marine Sciences and Environmental Technologies-Volume (3) -Issue (2) (In Arabic) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/371282756_altrf_ly_alanwa_alnbatyt_lmnatq_wady_kam_whsrha_wthdyd_ashkal_nmwha

التعرف على الانواع النباتية لمناطق وادي كعام وحصرها وتحديد أشكال نموها. 2017 .

Abusaief, H. M. A. (2013) Life forms and rangeland for many habitats of Jarjar oma in Al-Jabal Al- Akhdar on Mediterranean Sea. Journal of American Science 2013;9(5) http://www.jofamericanscience.org/journals/am-sci/am0905/029_17747am0905_236_249.pdf

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