Herbs 4–7 cm tall, small, base thickened by remnants of old petioles and arachnoid. Petiole pale green, ± winged; leaf blade pale grayish green, oblanceolate to broadly oblanceolate, 4–7 × 1.2–2 cm, sparsely arachnoid to glabrescent, pinnatilobed or shallowly so; lateral lobes 2 or 3, triangular to deltoid, ± patent to recurved, margin entire; interlobes short, margin entire; terminal lobe triangular, margin entire or sometimes with a single tooth, apex subobtuse. Scapes brownish green, ± equaling leaves, arachnoid. Capitulum ca. 2 cm wide. Involucre 6–7 mm wide, base broadly subconic. Outer phyllaries 8–11, pale green, ± imbricate, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, outermost ones 3–5 × 1.8–2.1 mm and ca. 1/2 as long as inner ones, appressed, narrow middle part blackish green, border getting paler from pale greenish near middle to whitish green near margin and 0.6–0.7 mm wide, margin subglabrous, apex subobtuse, bordered pinkish, and with a blackish callosity or ± flat; inner phyllaries 10–11 × ca. 2 mm, callose near apex. Ligules yellow; outer ligules outside faintly striped grayish pink; inner ligules with black apical teeth. Stigmas yellow. Anthers without pollen. Achene (not fully ripe) deep straw-colored brown, ca. 5 mm; body almost smooth, with sparse minute tubercles or smooth, apically indistinctly and very gradually narrowing into a subcylindric 1–1.3 mm cone; beak 3–4 mm. Pappus white, ca. 5 mm. Fl. late spring to summer. Agamosperm.

from: Ge X., Kirschner J. & Štepánek J. in Wu Z. Y. & al. (ed.), Flora of China 20–21: 318–319. 2011, Beijing & St Louis.