''Acamptopappus sphaerocephalus'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

known by the common name rayless goldenhead. It is native to the southwestern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, where it occurs in southern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, southern

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

, southern

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, and

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

.Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
/ref> This shrub or subshrub produces an upright, branching stem with shreddy whitish or gray bark. It approaches one meter in maximum height but generally grows to 20 to 40 centimeters. The gray-green leaves are linear or lance-shaped and are arranged alternately, sometimes growing in small clusters. They are hairless or have small, rough hairs. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is a solitary

flower head A pseudanthium (Greek for "false flower"; ) 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, compos ...

or a small cluster of heads. The head is hemispherical or spherical in shape. It has yellow disc florets and no ray florets. The fruit is an achene tipped with thick scales and bristles.''Acamptopappus sphaerocephalus''.
Jepson Manual Treatment.''Acamptopappus sphaerocephalus''.
Flora of North America.Griffith, Randy Scott. 1991

In: Fire Effects Information System, nline U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. This plant grows in the deserts of the southwestern

, especially the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

. It is also present in the southern Great Basin and the northern

Sonoran Desert The Sonoran Desert ( es, Desierto de Sonora) is a desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Ariz ...

. It grows in desert washes and on plains,

mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by a ...

s, and ridges. It is a member of several plant communities in pinyon-juniper woodlands, mesquite, creosote, and grassy shrubsteppe. It may be associated with catclaw acacia (''Acacia greggii''),

California juniper ''Juniperus californica'', the California juniper, is a species of juniper native to southwestern North America. Description ''Juniperus californica'' is a shrub or small tree reaching , but rarely up to tall. The bark is ashy gray, typically t ...

(''Juniperus californica''),

scrub oak Scrub oak is a common name for several species of small, shrubby oaks. It may refer to: *the Chaparral plant community in California, or to one of the following species. In California *California scrub oak ('' Quercus berberidifolia''), a wides ...

(''Quercus turbinella''),

Joshua tree ''Yucca brevifolia'' is a plant species belonging to the genus ''Yucca''. It is tree-like in habit, which is reflected in its common names: Joshua tree, yucca palm, tree yucca, and palm tree yucca. This monocotyledonous tree is native to the ar ...

(''Yucca brevifolia''),

California buckwheat ''Eriogonum fasciculatum'' is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names California buckwheat and flat-topped buckwheat. Characterized by small, white and pink flower clusters that give off a cottony effect, this species grows vari ...

(''Eriogonum fasciculatum''), golden cholla (''Opuntia echinocarpa''), and

Mojave yucca ''Yucca schidigera'', also known as the Mojave yucca or Spanish dagger, is a flowering plant native to the southwest deserts of North America. Description ''Yucca schidigera'' is a small evergreen tree growing to tall, with a dense crown of sp ...

(''Y. schidigera'').

References

External links

Calflora Database: ''Acamptopappus sphaerocephalus'' (Rayless goldenhead)The Nature ConservancyUSDA Plants ProfileCalPhotos Photo Gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4671830 Astereae Flora of the California desert regions Flora of Arizona Flora of Nevada Flora of Utah Natural history of the Mojave Desert Plants described in 1873 Taxa named by Asa Gray Flora without expected TNC conservation status