''Emilia fosbergii'' is a species of plant in the

sunflower family Asteraceae () is a large family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger fam ...

. It is commonly known in the United States as Florida tasselflower.

Taxonomy

''Emilia fosbergii'' has been collected in many places for many years, the specimens regarded as belonging to '' E. coccinia, E. sagittata, ''or'' E. javanica.'' A reexamination of a large number of specimens led Nicolson to recognize it as a distinct species in 1975. He named the species in honor of

Francis Raymond Fosberg Francis Raymond Fosberg (20 May 1908 – 25 September 1993) was an American botanist. A prolific collector and author, he played a significant role in the development of coral reef and island studies. History Ray Fosberg was born in Spokane ...

Distribution

''Emilia fosbergii'' is widely distributed in tropical and semitropical parts of the world:

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

and

Southeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, Radius, radially arrayed compass directions (or Azimuth#In navigation, azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A ''compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, northern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, and various oceanic islands. Its region of origin is the subject of some dispute; some say it is native to

, while others say

. It is reportedly naturalized in scattered locations in the United States, including

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, and the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands () are an archipelago between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Caribbean Sea, geographically forming part of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, Caribbean islands or West Indie ...

Description

''Emilia fosbergii'' is an

annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year **Yearbook **Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), a ...

herb, growing up to 100 cm (40 inches) tall. It generally has only one central stem, sometimes branching but other times not. Each

flower head A pseudanthium (; : pseudanthia) is an inflorescence that resembles a flower. The word is sometimes used for other structures that are neither a true flower nor a true inflorescence. Examples of pseudanthia include flower heads, composite flowers ...

can contain more than 60 pink, purple, or red

disc floret Asteraceae () is a large family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger fa ...

s, however, no

ray florets Asteraceae () is a large family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger fa ...

are present. It produces seeds with hairs intended for wind dispersal.
CABI Compendium, ''Emilia fosbergii'' (Florida tassel-flower), Rojas-Sandoval, Acevedo-Rodriguez.

References

External links

Senecioneae Flora of Northern America Flora of Asia Flora of Africa {{Senecioneae-stub