Sphaeranthus. 971 
A. Bisexual flowers 2—3 in each ecapitulum . 1. S. suaveolens. 
B. Bisexual flowers solitary, one in each capitulum 2. S. nubicus, 
1332. Sphaeranthus suaveolens DC. Prodrom. V (1836), p. 370. 
— Aschers.-Schweinf. Ill. Flor. @Eg., p. 86 no. 528. — Sickenberg. 
Contrib. Flor. d’Eg., p. 245. — Sphaeranthus indicus Gaertn. DC. 
Fructib. Il p. 413 tab. 164, fig. 5 not of Linn. — Sphaeranthus abys- 
sinicus Steetz in Peters Mozamb. Bot. I, p. 411. — Sphaeranthus 
angustifolius Sch. Bip. in Kotshy Herb. Nub. no. 463. — Boiss. Flor. 
Or. III, p. 215. — Erect or ascending herb, 30—60 cm high, bran- 
ched, glabrous or extremities puberulous; stem and branches alate. 
Leaves narrow-elliptic oblong or linear, acute or subacute, usually 
narrowed to the decurrent base, dentate or denticulate, 5—10 cm 
long, 2mm to 2'/, cm broad. Capitula few-flowered, densely crowded 
in ovoid-globose shortly pedunculate terminal and lateral heads 5 
to 15 mm in diam., solitary or occasionally 2—3 approximated; 
peduncles */,—5 in. alate. Scales of partial involucre 5—7 obovate- 
or linear-oblong or linear, obtuse, apiculate, ciliate above. Outer 
axial scales short, puberulous, ciliate. Common receptacle ovoid. 
Flowers white or rosecoloured. Bisexual flowers 2—3 in each capi- 
tulum. Achenes thinly pilose. 
N.d. Alexandria; Rosetta; Damietta; Damanhtr; Mehallet-el- 
Kebir; Tanta; Qalyub; Cairo. 
Local name: Zaghlift; forqeyh; sirr-el-ward (Schweinfurth). 
Aslo known from Tropical Africa, where the species is common. 
1333. (2.) Sphaeranthus nubicus Sch. Bip. in Steetz in Peters. 
Mozamb. II. Bot. (1862), p. 418. — Oliv. Flor. trop. Afr. HI, p. 335. 
— Sprunnera alata Sch. Bip. in Kotshy It. Nub., no. 209. — Oligoapis 
Sprunnera Steetz in Peters Mozamb. Bot. II, p.418. —. Annual, erect, 
little branched, or diffuse with numerous ascending branches, more 
or less glandular-hirtellous, about 30—70 cm high; stem and lower 
branches terete, faintly striate, upper branches alate. Leaves narrowly 
lanceolate or linear, acute or subacute, mucronate, denticulate, sessile, 
decurrent, membranous, 2—6 cm long by 2—8 mm wide. Capitula 
3—9 (usually 4-) flowered, of which 1 fl. (central) only is male, 
crowded many together in subhemispherical subsessile or shortly 
pedunculate heads 8—12 mm diam., terminating the stem and 
branches. Scales of partial involucre 3—5, scarious, linear-oblong, _ 
obtuse, apiculate, ciliate at apex, otherwise glabrous. Outer axial 
scales nearly equalling the head, closely appressed, broadly ovate, 
apiculate, pubescent. Common receptacle slightly convex. Corolla 
with scattered sessile glands. Achenes thinly hairy. — Flow. March. 
N. v. mer. Island of the Sirdar near Aswan. 
Also known from Cordofan and Lake Tshad. 
