''Acanthus dioscoridis'' is a species of flowering plant in the genus of '' Acanthus''. It is native to wetland of South

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Western Iran Western Iran consists of Armenian Highlands, northern Zagros and the rich agricultural area of the Khuzestan Plain in the south. It includes the provinces of Kordestan, Kermanshah Province, Kermanshah, Ilam Province, Ilam, Lorestan, and Hamadan ...

including

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, and

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

and exists as a shrub.

Description

It is a North African herbaceous perennial notable for its compact size, finely cut thistle-like foliage, and pink or red flower. This plant thrives in full sun or partial shade, adapting to most soils. It grows tall and wide, spreading slowly via rhizomes.

Infraspecies

It has four infraspecies: * ''Acanthus dioscoridis var. dioscoridis'' * ''Acanthus dioscoridis var. brevicaulis'' (Freyn) E.Hossain * ''Acanthus dioscoridis var. laciniatus'' Freyn * ''Acanthus dioscoridis var. perringii'' (Siehe) E.Hossain In the 1997 IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants all but ''Acanthus dioscoridis var. dioscoridis'' were listed as rare, but none are listed in the 2024-2 registry.

References

dioscoridis Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Flora of Turkey Flora of Iran Flora of Iraq Flora of Lebanon and Syria Flora of Armenia Flora of Georgia (country) Flora of Azerbaijan Plants described in 1756 {{Acanthaceae-stub