Herbs 10-17 cm tall. Petiole grayish purple, unwinged; leaf blade grayish mid-green with a grayish purple midvein, ± linear, 12-16 × (1.2-)1.5-1.8 cm, ± subglabrous, pinnatisect; lateral lobes 5 or 6 on each side, usually alternate, narrowly triangular or from a broader base abruptly narrowed into linear-oblong distal part, 5-8 × 3-4 mm, usually recurved, proximal margin entire, distal margin entire or with a single tooth, apex acute; interlobes 8-14 × 2-3(-4) mm, margin entire or with a single tooth; terminal lobe narrowly triangular, 1.5-2 × 0.8-1.4 cm, margin entire but distally concave, apex acuminate. Scapes greenish brown to purplish, ± equaling leaves, arachnoid. Capitulum 3-3.5 cm wide. Involucre 6-8 mm wide, base flat-rounded. Outer phyllaries with deep green middle part and a gradual transitioning into whitish membranous to 1 mm border but later in season with only a 0.2-0.4 mm wide border; outer phyllaries in early spring plants 11-14, suffused reddish in distal ca. 1/3, ± imbricate, broadly ovate to ovate-lanceolate, outermost ones 4-5 mm and to 1/2 as long as inner ones, appressed, apex callose to corniculate; outer phyllaries in early summer flowering plants 18-21, conspicuously imbricate, ovate-lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, outermost ones 5-6 × 2.5-3 mm and 2/5-1/2 as long as inner ones, apex usually reddish callose; inner phyllaries ca. 1.2 cm, flat to ± corniculate below apex. Ligules deep yellow, ± flat; outer ligules outside striped purplish grayish brown; inner ligules canaliculate, with purplish apical teeth; ligule tube pubescent. Stigmas dirty yellow. Anthers polliniferous; pollen grains irregular in size. Achene light grayish straw-colored brown, 5.2-5.7 × ca. 1 mm; body with prominent lateral ridges, ± sparsely spinulose mainly on ridges in upper ca. 2/3 and elsewhere in upper ca. 1/3, very gradually narrowing into a thick ± subconic 1.3-1.5 mm cone, spinules long, thin, and erect and with some also on cone; beak 4.5-5 mm, ± thin. Pappus ± white, ca. 7 mm. Fl. spring and summer. Agamosperm.
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