Plants bluish green. Stems 1(-4), erect, to 45 cm tall, 1-3 mm in diam. at base, glabrous or distalmost part sparsely white pilose. Basal leaves broadly shortly petiolate or sessile, linear or linear-lanceolate, to 23 cm × 2.5-5(-30) mm, parallel veined, glabrous, base narrowed, margin entire, apex acute. Stem leaves numerous, bracteal, lanceolate to linear. Capitulum solitary, nodding. Involucre hemispheric, 1-1.2 × 1-2.5 cm, outside blackish gray, glabrous or base sparsely pilose; phyllaries 12-14, in 2 rows, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, 2-4 mm wide, margin narrowly membranous, apex acute, white ciliate. Ray florets sometimes absent, pale yellow; lamina yellow or purplish red, linear-lanceolate, to 4 cm × 2-3 mm, apex long acuminate; tube ca. 2 mm. Tubular florets numerous, yellow, 5-7 mm; tube 1.5-2 mm. Achenes yellowish brown, oblong, 2-3 mm. Pappus white, as long as tubular corolla. Fl. and fr. Jul-Oct. 2n = 58*.

● Alpine meadows, stream banks, swamp meadows, scrub; 2400-4800 m. SW Gansu, Qinghai, NW Sichuan, E Xizang.