Gymnarrhena
| Gymnarrhena | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Subfamily: | Gymnarrhenoideae |
| Tribe: | Gymnarrheneae |
| Genus: | Gymnarrhena Desf. |
| Species: | G. micrantha |
| Binomial name | |
| Gymnarrhena micrantha | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Gymnarrhena is a deviant genus of plants in the family Asteraceae, with only one known species, Gymnarrhena micrantha. It is native to North Africa and the Middle East, as far east as Balochistan. Together with the very different Cavea tanguensis, it constitutes the tribe Gymnarrheneae, and the subfamily Gymnarrhenoideae.
Gymnarrhena is a small, flowering, winter annual with a rosette of simple, narrow leaves and flower heads cropped at its heart. It does not contain latex and does not carry spines. Gymnarrhena flowers in March and April. One of the common names in Arabic is كَف الكَلْب meaning "dog's footprint", while in Hebrew it is called מוצנית קטנת-פרחים meaning "small chaff flower".