A small, 5 – 10  cm tall herb. Leaves c. 5 cm long including petiole, lobed, lobes triangular or deltoid, with patent or retrorse teeth; terminal lobe deltoid short or long sagittate; petiole winged at the base, yellowish to pinkish. Scapes 1-2, hairy above, equalling the leaves. Capitula 1.2–1.8  cm across. Involucre 10 – 12  x 7 – 14 mm, light to dark green; outer phyllaries appressed, recurved at apex, lanceolate to ovate, purple above, with or without scarious margin; inner ones linear, callose or smooth. Ligules yellow, peripheral ones with dark stripes outside. Anthers polliniferous. Styles yellow; stigmas yellow to greenish. Cypselas 3 – 3.2  mm long, spinulose above, rugose below, smooth at the base, with nearly abruptly formed, 1–1.2 mm long, cylindrical or subcylindrical cone; beak 5 – 6  mm long; pappus c. 5 mm long, white.

A variable species, two subspecies are recognized in our area.

Though the characters appear to be sufficient as to consider them as  two distinct species, but because of overlapping characters and intermediate forms. Following  Soest (op. cit.) they are treated as two subspecies.