Mantisalca

Mantisalca is a genus of plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae, it contains six described species.

Description
Annual or biennial herbs growing between 50 cm to 1.3 metres in size. Herbage is not spiny.

Morphology
The stems are erect, strongly branched, longitudinal parallel lines (striate) with wings on stem absent.

Leaves grow around the base (basal) and along the stem (cauline). Leaves are without spines. Basal leaves dissected to the midrib with the leave segments merging (confluent) at the midrib (pinnatisect). Stem leaves sparse, much reduced, very narrow in length with parallel sides (linear) and toothed, with the teeth pointing towards the leaf tip (serrate).

Flower heads are solitary with ray-florets absent and receptacle scales present. Involcural bracts are ovoid to spheric in shape, 10 to 15 mm in diameter. The bracts are in several series, up to eight in number, ending in a short deciduous spines or with a short sharp point (mucronate).

Distribution and habitat
Mantisalca occurs primarily in northern Africa, southern Europe and Turkey. One species, Mantisalca salmantica, is naturalised in Australia.

Etymology
Mantisalca is the anagram of the type species epithet salmantica.

Species

 * Species
 * Mantisalca amberboides (Caball.) Maire - Morocco
 * Mantisalca cabezudoi
 * Mantisalca delestrii Briq. & Cavill. - Morocco, Algeria
 * Mantisalca duriaei Briq. & Cavill. - France, Spain, Italy
 * Mantisalca salmantica (L.) Briq. & Cavill. - widespread from Britain + Morocco to Palestine
 * Mantisalca spinulosa

Selected hybrids include:
 * Mantisalca × castroviejoi