Gazania lichtensteinii

Gazania lichtensteinii is a perennial herb that sprawls after winter rain from underground stems. It produces these yellow daisies with the small black marks on each of the sterile ray florets. A ray floret also has a central green band on its lower surface.

The involucral bracts that form a cup at the base of the flower are spine-tipped. The disc florets in the daisy centre are also yellow, warranting the Afrikaans name of botterblom (butter flower). The leaves are short and obovate with lobed or entire margins, slightly hairy on their lower surface.

Although the plant is found from Namibia to the Little Karoo, it is notable that several literature sources associate this plant with the Goegap Nature Reserve near Springbok where this picture was taken (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2010).