Plants from stout rhizomes, stems simple, slender, to 100 cm long. Radical leaves thin chartaceous; petiole 40 cm long, not winged, clasping at base; blade hastate-cordate to reniform-hastate, 24×17-20 cm; cauline leaves 3, lower one with sheathing base, upper leaves smaller. Inflorescence densely racemose, densely puberulous. Involucre tubular, 10-12×2.5-3 mm, subtended by linear lanceolate bract-like leaves, bracts 5, minutely puberulous. Ray florets 1-3, or absent; corolla 20-25×3-4 mm, pistillate, tube 5-9 mm long. Disc florets 6-12, bisexual, corolla tubular, 11-15 mm. Achenes oblanceolate, slightly compressed, 6-7 mm long. Pappus white or light brown, bristles many, unequal.

ILAN: Szuyuan to Nanshan, Lu 207. HSINCHU: Itseshan, Hsieh 1298. TAICHUNG: Yunling Lodge, Hsu 769. NANTOU: Nanhuashan, Kelley 214-98. HUALIEN: Nengkaoshan, Sasaki s. n. 1929.

Japan and China. Taiwan, moist habitats in mountains, 1,600-2,800 m.

Japanese specimens of L. stenocephala nearly always have triangularly hastate leaves with the apex abruptly acuminate and densely many headed racemes. In Taiwan most individuals have cordate-reniform leaves with the apex not distinctly acuminate and racemes with more loosely spaced heads. We suspect that hybrid individuals between L. stenocephala and L. kojimae exist in Taiwan.