Family: Plantaginaceae Juss.
Distribution: Eastern part of the Mediterranean region – Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Israel, Jordan. It was introduced into Western Australia.
Ecology: It grows on dry, rocky and sandy habitats, in disturbed sites, from the coast to an elevation of about 1000(–1200) m asl. It blooms from March to May.
Description: Annual herb, 3–8 cm tall. Leaves in basal rosettes, narrowly lanceolate, entire, hairy. Scapes often more than 10, much shorter than leaves, only 5–10 mm long, ascending to erect. Spikes spherical or hemispherical, up to 10 mm, hairy; flowers tetramerous, sepals up to 3.5 mm, corolla-lobes orbicular-ovate, shortly acuminate. The fruit is a capsule.
These images were taken in Cyprus, the British Sovereign Base Area of Akrotiri (March 28, 2010).
