Eriocaulon sonderianum Körn.

Tufted perennial, rosettes arising from a branched rhizome, forming colonies. Leaves elongate-triangular, 2-8(-12) cm long, 1-4 mm wide, straight or curved outwards, somewhat spongy at the base, tapering to a long, tine, wire-like point. Scapes usually solitary, (3-)5-23(-35) cm long, 0.8-1 mm in diameter, 5-or 6-ribbed, glabrous or with short, white bristles between the ribs; sheaths usually longer than the leaves, shortly obliquely split with a rounded limb which usually splits into 3 or more, spreading, papery lobes. Heads ± spherical or slightly flattened, 5-10 nun in diameter, dirty white; receptacle hemispherical, woolly hairy, entirely male heads common. Involucral bracts shorter than the head, obovate-oblong, ±3 mm long, the outer obtuse and glabrous, the inner with broadly triangular tips with a few white hairs, reflexing at maturity. Floral bracts oblanceolate, 2-4 mm long, scarious, spongy along the keel, flushed grey, densely white-hairy above, acute. Flowers 2-3.8 mm long. Male flowers: sepals 3, united below into a spathe, ±3 mm long, grey, two lobes slightly keeled, the third flat, rounded and with white hairs at the tip; petals 3, shortly exerted from the sepals, unequal, with white hairs on the inner surface; anthers ±0.3 nun long, black. Female flowers', sepals 3, boat-like, ±3 mm long, the keel spongy, sometimes expanded into a wing, grey, scarious, with white hairs along the margins; petals 3, narrowly oblanceolate-oblong, two 1.72.2 mm long, the third slightly larger, with white hairs on the inner surface. Seeds uncommon, broadly ellipsoid, 0.6 mm long, mid-brown.