Flora of New Zealand Series

Prostrate to ascending, annual or short-lived perennial herb. Lvs glabrous or with few scattered hairs, apetiolate, narrow-oblong to elliptic or obovate, amplexicaul, usually pinnatifid with 1-3, broad, few-toothed segments on each side, sometimes not lobed but serrate with 1-4-(8) teeth on each side, (20)-25-90 × (5)-15-45 mm. Uppermost lvs smaller, narrower, and often less divided. Supplementary bracts (4)-6-10, 1-4 mm long. Involucral bracts 11-15-(16), glabrous, (5)-5.5-9 mm long. Ray florets c. 7-11; ligules yellow, (1)-2-4 mm long. Disc yellow, 4-8 mm diam. Achenes usually ± evenly clothed in dense hairs, rarely outermost achenes almost glabrous, slightly narrowed to apex, 2.8-3.5 mm long.

S.: Canterbury (from Banks Peninsula southwards), Otago, Southland, Is of Foveaux Strait; St.: N.W. area and Codfish Id.

Endemic.

Coastal sites.

FL Jan-Dec.

S. carnosulus has previously been recognised at infraspecific level within S. lautus, most recently as subsp. carnosulus (Kirk) Ornd., by Ornduff (op. cit.). Plants from the Punakaiki area, included by Ornduff within his concept of this taxon, are referred here to S. sterquilinus. S. carnosulus differs from S. lautus sens. strict. in being generally larger in all its vegetative parts, with usually broader lf segments, longer involucral bracts, larger discs, but shorter rays. It also differs in chromosome number (2 n = 80), and in its more southerly distribution although the 2 spp. are sympatric on Banks Peninsula.