
Leontodon pyrenaicus

Leontodon pyrenaicus is a species of hawkbit found in the Alps, Pyrenees, Cantabrian Mountains, northern Apennines and northern parts of the Balkan Peninsula. It grows in meadows and on stony slopes from the tree line to over 3000 m, usually on acidic soils. It is perennial, and flowers from June to August.
The stems of "L. pyrenaicus" are narrow, up to 30 cm long, with several scale-like leaves, and with a single flower head at the top. The leaves form a basal rosette, and are clearly stalked. The flower heads are 20–20 mm wide and bright yellow.
"L. pyrenaicus" is divided into three allopatric subspecies which differ in their size and in the nature of the hairs on the bracts:
A number of authors since 2006, based on molecular evidence, have divided the genus "Leontodon" into two, with the former subgenus "Oporinia" split out into the genus "Scorzoneroides". If this is done, "L. pyrenaicus" is placed in "Scorzoneroides" as "S. pyrenaica". It is also common for the subspecies to be considered separate species, in which case they are called "Leontodon cantabricus" (or "Scorzoneroides cantabrica"), "L. helveticus" ("S. helvetica") and "L. pyrenaicus" ("S. pyrenaica").