Capitula solitary on fistular scapes, homogamous. Involucre campanulate; phyll. in several series. Receptacle flat, nude. Florets ligulate; anthers sagittate at base, cells not tailed. Achenes cylindric to fusiform, with long slender beak; pappus-hairs cop. Perennial herbs with stout taproot and rosulate lvs; latex cop. Genus subcosmopolitan, of c. 50 spp. The N.Z. sp. also occurs in southern S. America.

Perennial, or rarely biennial, taprooted herbs. Hairs eglandular, usually cobwebby, or 0. Stems scapose. Lvs all basal, usually runcinate-pinnatifid, rarely not lobed. Capitula solitary. Involucral bracts glabrous or ciliate; outer bracts < inner, erect to reflexed; inner bracts in ± 1 series. Receptacle colliculate or alveolate, glabrous; scales 0. Corolla ligulate, pale to golden yellow, often striped with grey, red or violet. Style branches filiform, yellow, or green to blackish at least when dry. Achenes numerous, usually pale to dark or reddish brown, sometimes greenish, grey, reddish or purplish, ribbed, scabrid to muricate on ribs, beaked, with a short tapering or cylindric cone at base of beak, rarely cone and beak 0; pappus bristles in many rows, white to sordid, usually > achene body, simple, connate at base.