Herbs 25-35 cm tall, robust. Petiole purple, broadly winged in outer leaves but almost unwinged in inner ones; leaf blade light bright green and usually with a pale grayish pink midvein, ± narrowly oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 15-25 × 3.5-4.5 cm, subleathery, sparsely to ± densely arachnoid, pinnatisect; lateral lobes 4 or 5(or 6), ca. 2 cm, from ca. 1 cm wide base abruptly narrowing into a lingulate acute distal part, usually conspicuously pointing upward but less often ± patent, proximal margin ± straight, distal margin sigmoid, dentate, and incised; interlobes to 2 cm, margin sparsely dentate, teeth long and narrow; terminal lobe ± broadly triangular to deltoid, 1.5-2(-3.5) × 2-3.5 cm, basal segments patent to curved upward, terminal segment with distal margin concave and entire and apex acute and submucronate. Scapes light green but purplish at base, overtopping leaves, densely arachnoid. Capitulum to 5 cm wide. Involucre 1-1.2 cm wide, base broadly obconic. Outer phyllaries 20-25, light to deep olivaceous green, lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, outermost ones 9-13 × 3.5-4.5 mm and often almost as long as inner ones, variously arcuate-recurved, paler whitish border 0.1-0.2 mm wide, margin densely ciliate but later glabrescent, apex callose to horned with horn to 1.5 mm; inner phyllaries ca. 1.3 cm, apex ± corniculate. Ligules deep yellow; outer ligules ± flat, outside striped light grayish pink; inner ligules with reddish or yellow apical teeth. Stigmas greenish dirty yellow. Anthers polliniferous, striped brownish red on edges; pollen grains irregular in size. Achene grayish straw-colored brown, 5.3-5.6 × 1-1.3 mm; body ± densely spinulose in upper ca. 1/3, subabruptly narrowing into a subcylindric 1.3-1.6 mm cone, spinules long, thin, and ± suberect; beak ca. 1 cm. Pappus dirty white, 7-8 mm. Fl. late spring. Agamosperm.
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