H. Beentje (2005) Sonchus. Flora of Somalia 3: 480-481.
Plants herbs or subshrubs, with white latex; stems erect or scrambling, often hollow. Leaves alternate, often pinnatifid or pinnatisect, basal leaves smaller than those above. Inflorecences usually corymbs or panicles of capitual, rarely of a solitary capitulum; involucres cylindrical to spreading, often woolly at the base; phyllaries in several series, imbricate, the outermost smallest and becoming swollen at the base; receptacles without bracts, pitted. Flowers many; corollas yellow; anthers sagitttate at the base; style branches with minute sweeping hairs. Achenes flattened, few ribbed; pappuses with both bristles and fine hairs.
Sonchus includes about 60 species. They are native in frica, Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. Some species are cosmopolitan weeds.
The Flora of Somalia reports 3 species from Somaliland, none from Somalia. All of the species in Somaliland occur as weeds.