Herbs to 45 cm tall, robust, perennial but often mistakenly reported to be biennial. Leaves basally indistinctly narrowed into a winged green or purplish petiole; leaf blade pale grayish green, oblanceolate to narrowly oblanceolate, 20-30 × 3-5 cm, arachnoid to densely arachnoid, margin usually dentate or rarely with patent acute lobules. Scapes pale brownish green, sparsely arachnoid near base but very densely arachnoid below capitulum, hairs pale brownish. Capitulum 5-6 cm wide. Involucre to 1.3 cm wide, base ± rounded. Outer phyllaries to 40, linear-lanceolate, 1.5-1.8 × 0.2-0.3 cm, irregularly recurved, apically attenuate, middle part paler green, venation prominent, border purplish or membranous, margin dentate and apically ciliate, apex with a large acute horn; inner phyllaries 1.5-1.7 cm, narrow. Ligules yellowish orange, later light brownish orange; outer ligules flat, striped purplish; inner ligules involute. Stigmas deep brownish grayish green, dark blackish violet when dry. Anthers polliniferous; pollen grains regular in size. Achene pale brown, 3.5-5 × 1-1.5 mm; body apically densely spinulose-squamulose and subabruptly narrowing into a 0.5-0.8 mm subconic cone; beak 1.2-1.5 cm. Pappus 6-7 mm. Fl. late summer. Sexual. 2n = 16*
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