Asteraceae or Compositae is a family of flowering plants (anthophytes) in the order Asterales. Asteraceae (commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite,[1] or sunflower family), is a very large and widespread family,[2][3] which includes over 32,000 currently accepted species, in over 1,900 genera (list) in 13 subfamilies.[4] In terms of numbers of species, the Asteraceae are rivaled only by the Orchidaceae.[2][5] Nearly all Asteraceae bear their flowers in dense heads (capitula or pseudanthia) surrounded by involucral bracts. When viewed from a distance, each capitulum may appear to be a single flower. Enlarged outer (peripheral) flowers in the capitula may resemble petals, and the involucral bracts may look like a calyx. The name Asteraceae comes from the type genus Aster, from the Ancient Greek ἀστήρ, meaning star, and refers to the star-like form of the inflorescence. The alternative name Compositae is still valid under the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants.[6] It refers to the "composite" nature of the capitula, which consist of a few or many individual flowers.
Most members of Asteraceae are annual or perennial herbs, but a significant number are also shrubs, vines, or trees. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, with species ranging from subpolar to tropical regions, colonizing a wide variety of habitats. The largest proportion of the species occur in the arid and semiarid regions of subtropical and lower temperate latitudes.[7]
23,420 species of vascular plant have been recorded in South Africa, making it the sixth most species-rich country in the world and the most species-rich country on the African continent. Of these, 153 species are considered to be threatened.[8] Nine biomes have been described in South Africa: Fynbos, Succulent Karoo, desert, Nama Karoo, grassland, savanna, Albany thickets, the Indian Ocean coastal belt, and forests.[9]
The 2018 South African National Biodiversity Institute's National Biodiversity Assessment plant checklist lists 35,130 taxa in the phyla Anthocerotophyta (hornworts (6)), Anthophyta (flowering plants (33534)), Bryophyta (mosses (685)), Cycadophyta (cycads (42)), Lycopodiophyta (Lycophytes(45)), Marchantiophyta (liverworts (376)), Pinophyta (conifers (33)), and Pteridophyta (cryptogams (408)).[10]
329 genera are represented in the literature. Listed taxa include species, subspecies, varieties, and forms as recorded, some of which have subsequently been allocated to other taxa as synonyms, in which cases the accepted taxon is appended to the listing.[10] Multiple entries under alternative names reflect taxonomic revision over time.
Genus Acanthospermum:[10]
Genus Acanthotheca:[10]
Genus Achyrocline:[10]
Genus Adenachaena:[10]
Genus Adenanthellum:[10]
Genus Adenoglossa:[10]
Genus Adenostemma:[10]
Genus Amphiglossa:[10]
Genus Anderbergia:[10]
Genus Anisochaeta:[10]
Genus Anisopappus:[10]
Genus Anisothrix:[10]
Genus Antithrixia:[10]
Genus Arctotheca:[10]
Genus Argyrocome:[10]
Genus Arrowsmithia:[10]
Genus Artemisiopsis:[10]
Genus Ascaricida:[10]
Genus Atractylis:[10]
Genus Atrichantha:[10]
Genus Baccharoides:[10]
Genus Blainvillea:[10]
Genus Bothriocline:[10]
Genus Brachylaena:[10]
Genus Brachymeris:[10]
Genus Brachyrhynchos:[10]
Genus Bryomorphe:[10]
Genus Callilepis:[10]
Genus Calostephane:[10]
Genus Campuloclinium:[10]
Genus Centrapalus:[10]
Genus Chondrilla:[10]
Genus Chromolaena:[10]
Genus Chrysanthellum:[10]
Genus Chrysanthemoides:[10]
Genus Chrysanthemum:[10]
Genus Chrysocoma:[10]
Genus Comborhiza:[10]
Genus Crassocephalum:[10]
Genus Crassothonna:[10]
Genus Callumia:[10]
Genus Cyanthillium:[10]
Genus Cymbopappus:[10]
Genus Cypselodontia:[10]
Genus Decaneurum:[10]
Genus Dicerothamnus:[10]
Genus Dichrocephala:[10]
Genus Dimorphanthes:[10]
Genus Dimorphotheca:[10]
Genus Distephanus:[10]
Genus Dittrichia:[10]
Genus Doellia:[10]
Genus Dolichothrix:[10]
Genus Doria:[10]
Genus Elephantopus:[10]
Genus Elytropappus:[10]
Genus Eriocephalus:[10]
Genus Erlangia:[10]
Genus Eschenbachia:[10]
Genus Eupatorium:[10]
Genus Gaillardia:[10]
Genus Gamochaeta:[10]
Genus Gnaphalium:[10]
Genus Gongrothamnus:[10]
Genus Gongyloglossa:[10]
Genus Gymnanthemum:[10]
Genus Gymnodiscus:[10]
Genus Gymnopentzia:[10]
Genus Gymnostephium:[10]
Genus Haplocarpha:[10]
Genus Helianthus:[10]
Genus Helichrysopsis:[10]
Genus Helichrysum:[10]
Genus Helminthotheca:[10]
Genus Heterolepis:[10]
Genus Heterorhachis:[10]
Genus Hilliardia:[10]
Genus Hilliardiella:[10]
Genus Hoplophyllum:[10]
Genus Hymenolepis:[10]
Genus Hypericophyllum:[10]
Genus Hypochaeris:[10]
Genus Inulanthera:[10]
Genus Lachnospermum:[10]
Genus Laevicarpa:[10]
Genus Lamprocephalus:[10]
Genus Langebergia:[10]
Genus Lasiopogon:[10]
Genus Lasiospermum:[10]
Genus Lepidostephium:[10]
Genus Leucanthemum:[10]
Genus Leucoptera:[10]
Genus Linzia:[10]
Genus Lopholaena:[10]
Genus Mantisalca:[10]
Genus Marasmodes:[10]
Genus Matricaria:[10]
Genus Melanthera:[10]
Genus Mesogramma:[10]
Genus Microglossa:[10]
Genus Mikaniopsis:[10]
Genus Minurothamnus:[10]
Genus Monticapra:[10]
Genus Myrovernix:[10]
Genus Myxopappus:[10]
Genus Namibithamnus:[10]
Genus Nephrotheca:[10]
Genus Norlindhia:[10]
Genus Oldenburgia:[10]
Genus Oligocarpus:[10]
Genus Oligoglossa:[10]
Genus Oligothrix:[10]
Genus Oncosiphon:[10]
Genus Orbivestus:[10]
Genus Oreoleysera:[10]
Genus Osmitopsis:[10]
Genus Osteospermum:[10]
Genus Parapolydora:[10]
Genus Parthenium:[10]
Genus Pechuel-loeschea:[10]
Genus Pegolettia:[10]
Genus Pentatrichia:[10]
Genus Phaenocoma:[10]
Genus Phaneroglossa:[10]
Genus Philyrophyllum:[10]
Genus Phymaspermum:[10]
Genus Platycarpha:[10]
Genus Platycarphella:[10]
Genus Plecostachys:[10]
Genus Poecilolepis:[10]
Genus Polyarrhena:[10]
Genus Pseudoconyza:[10]
Genus Pseudognaphalium:[10]
Genus Pseudopegolettia:[10]
Genus Pterothrix:[10]
Genus Rhynchopsidium:[10]
Genus Roodebergia:[10]
Genus Schistostephium:[10]
Genus Seneciodes:[10]
Genus Sigesbeckia:[10]
Genus Sphaeranthus:[10]
Genus Sphagneticola:[10]
Genus Spilanthes:[10]
Genus Staehelina:[10]
Genus Steirodiscus:[10]
Genus Stilpnogyne:[10]
Genus Stomatanthes:[10]
Genus Symphyotrichum:[10]
Genus Tarchonanthus:[10]
Genus Thaminophyllum:[10]
Genus Tragopogon:[10]
Genus Trichogyne:[10]
Genus Troglophyton:[10]
Genus Urospermum:[10]
Genus Vellereophyton:[10]
Genus Vernonella:[10]
Genus Vernoniastrum:[10]
Genus Xeranthemum:[10]
Genus Zoutpansbergia:[10]