Stats

Lifespan: Perennial
Size: Medium
Diet: Photosynthetic
Biome: Freshwater wetland
Range: North America
Movement: Sessile
Breeding: Seeds
Defense: Spines
Status: Uncommon

About

This daisy relative grows in damp meadows across Mexico and the American Southwest. Its seeds are covered in tiny, hooked barbs that latch onto passing fur to travel.

Life cycle

1.
seed
A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2.
sprout
A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3.
sapling
A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4.
mature
Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Bidens
Species: Bidens aurea