| Helminthotheca echioides | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Genus: | Helminthotheca |
| Species: | H. echioides |
| Binomial name | |
| Helminthotheca echioides | |
Helminthotheca echioides, known asbristly (orprickly)oxtongue, is a sprawlingannual orbiennialherb native toEurope andNorth Africa. It was originally placed within the genusPicris but is often separated within the small genusHelminthotheca alongside a few other (mainly North African) plants which also have the distinctive outer row of bracts around the flowerheads. It is aruderal plant, found on waste ground and agricultural soils around the world, and in some places it is considered a troublesome weed.
Bristly oxtongue is an annual to biennialherb with an erect or sprawling habit that grows up to 90 cm (35 in) tall (often up to 150 cm in fertile soils and shady places),[1] with a solid, furrowed stem and spreading branches. The basal rosette leaves are 10–20 cm (4–8 in) long,oblanceolate with a shortpetiole, whereas thecauline leaves are lanceolate and sessile with clasping, cordate bases. On the leaves and stem (especially on the basal leaves) there are distinctive sharp bristles, 2 mm long, with swollen whitish bases that resemble blisters. On other parts of the plant there is a scattering of smaller, anchor-shaped hairs with recurved double-pronged tips which make the plant feel sticky.[2][3]
In northern Europe it flowers from May to October. Theinflorescences arise on long stalks from the leaf axils in an irregularcorymb. Each flowerhead is 2–3.5 cm (0.8–1.4 in) wide with numerous yellow ray flowers (the outer florets sometimes tinged red/brown). They are surrounded by three rows ofinvolucral bracts: an inner ring which is narrow and blunt-tipped with a spiny awn that arises just below the tip; a middle ring of tiny bracts which are easily overlooked and sit at the base of the inner row (they are important in separating this from other species ofHelminthotheca);[4] and an outer ring which is made up of 3 to 5 large, ovate-cordate flaps that later surround the seed head. This outer ring of bracts are the defining feature of the genusHelminthotheca.[5][6]
Helminthotheca echioides is said to be heterocarpic (i.e. it has fruits of two different shapes),[4] however, not all authors report this. When it is so, the outer achenes (which are retained inside the closed-up seedhead after the central ones have dispersed) are slightly longer (7 mm) and curved, while the inner ones are only 5 mm long and straight. The normal achenes are yellow to orange or brown in colour and have transverse scaly ridges, and a narrowed tip (beak) about as long as the body, to which is affixed a pappus of two rows of white, feathery plumes which enable the seeds to be dispersed by the wind. Reproduction is believed to beapomictic, so the plants effectively clone themselves, but the flowers are also visited by bees.[3]
The genusHelminthotheca was originally described by the pre-Linnean authorSébastien Vaillant in 1754 but, because such names are ruled out by theCode of Nomenclature, the recognised author isJohann Gottfried Zinn, who listed it in hisDescription of the flora around Göttingen in 1757. However,Linnaeus had by this time already published a valid name for bristly oxtongue inSpecies Plantarum, so Linnaeus's name,Picris echioides, is thebasionym and has precedence over the name Zinn used. Prickly oxtongue has therefore been assigned to two different genera from earliest days, but the combination of Zinn'sHelminthotheca and Linnaeus'sechioides was not formed until 1973, when the name was coined by the Czech botanistJosef Holub in a paper in the journalFolia Geobotanica & Phytotaxonomica. In the English-speaking world, endorsement for the new combination was given by Walter Lack in a paper in the journalTaxon in 1975.[7][8][9]
Many other synonyms forHelminthotheca echioides have been coined over the years, which are listed in theInternational Cichorieae Network: Cichorieae Portal.
Modern molecular studies show thatPicris andHelminthotheca are closely related. The studies are consistent with the current view that they be considered separate genera. Anatomically, they are separated mainly by the presence of an outer row of enlarged involucral bracts inHelminthotheca.[10][6]
Its chromosome number is 2n = 10.[11]
Helminthotheca echioides is not known to hybridise with any other species.[12]
A number ofinfraspecific taxa have been described, varying in their leaf shape,[13] although they are not widely accepted. Sell & Murrell[3] list four varieties in Britain:
The generic nameHelminthotheca derives from the Ancient Greekἕλμινθος (helmins, helminthos), which means "intestinal worm", and θήκη (theca), which is a box or a case (used in anatomy and zoology to describe the sheath around an organ), to make the word "worm-case". It refers to the appearance of the seeds of oxtongue, which look rather like nematode eggs.[14][15] The "theca" part of the name might be a reference to the way the capitulum closes up after fruiting, trapping some of the seeds within the "case" of the dead flowerhead.[16][4] Thespecific epithetechioides comes from the similarity of theleaves to those ofviper's bugloss, which also have blister-like hairs on the surface.[17]The suffix-oides means "-like".[18]
The common name also describes the shape and appearance of the leaves.
Hawkweed oxtongue has very similar flowers to bristly oxtongue, but they can easily be separate by these features:
At the rosette stage, there are two plants in Britain which are very similar to bristly oxtongue:viper's bugloss andteasel.
Helminthotheca echioides is thought to be native toNorth Africa and theMediterranean Basin, where it grows in semi-arid conditions that are reproduced in theruderal habitats associated with agriculture and the disturbed soils created by human activity throughout the world. As a result, it has spread as aweed to all the continents (except mainland Antarctica), and it is often abundant in farmland and towns.[20]
The IUCN has not yet assessed the global status of bristly oxtongue,[21] but where it has been assessed within its native range, it is generally assigned to the category LC (least concern).[22][23][24]
InGreat Britain it is common in the south and east and more patchily distributed to the north and west, whereas it is rare inIreland. It is considered to be anarchaeophyte (ancient introduction) throughout theBritish Isles, and it is thought to be increasing in many areas.[25][26]
It has been introduced toNorth America, where it can now be found fromNova Scotia toBritish Columbia andCalifornia, and it is classified as an invasive weed.[27]
It was first noticed in Australia in 1871 and has since spread to most parts of the country.[4]
Bristly oxtongue is an opportunist species which will colonisedisturbed ground very quickly. It is considered to act as atherophyte, which completes its life cycle quickly, or ahemicryptophyte, which has a basal rosette to survive unfavourable conditions such as winter or drought. The feathery pappus allows seeds to be widely dispersed by the wind, but it has no capacity for vegetative spread (for example, by stolons or bulbs).[1] Typical habitats for it include waste ground, field margins, sea walls, road verges and banks on clay soils or chalk.[26] One reason for its success is that it is particularly resistant to drought, being able to sprout from basal shoots after dry periods.[11]
It generally grows in places where there is full sunlight, whilst also tolerating partial shade, for example, by hedgerows; it requires moderately damp soils with a slightly alkaline reaction; and it prefers moderately fertile conditions. TheEllenberg values in Britain are L = 7, F = 5, R = 7, N = 6, and S = 0.[28]
It is a lowland plant in theBritish Isles, recorded only up to 370 m (in southWales).[29]
The UKDatabase of Insects and their Food Plants lists four species that make use of bristly oxtongue. The larvae of theflyTephritis separata, which is widespread throughout Europe and Asia, live on the flowers. ThewaspPhanacis caulicola (Hedicke, 1939) has larvae that tunnel chambers inside the stem, leaving no visible sign of their presence until they emerge.[30] Two moths also live on this species:Neocochylis hybridella caterpillars feed within the seedheads,[31] and theTortrix mothAethes tesserana larvae feed within the roots.[32] Both these species are also widespread in Europe and western Asia.
The leaves were formerly used as a pot herb, and were "esteemed good to relax the bowels".[33] There are also various reports of it being used as anantihelminthic treatment, although this may be due to confusion about the meaning of its name.[34][16] The English herbalistNicholas Culpeper considered "Lang de Boeuf" to be a good cure for melancholy (when steeped in wine), and a general alexipharmic (antidote to unspecified toxins).[35]
Although it is not a popular culinary herb, some foragers like to use the flowers to flavour vinegar.[36]
Some pet owners feed the leaves to theirtortoises, but many apparently do not like it.[37][38]
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