Actually it's the other way around Myriam, Emilia coccinea is a synonym of Emilia fosbergii but that doesn't mean they are the same plant, it means that at some time in history the same plant has born a different name. This often happened when more than one person 'discovered' a plant, they thought they were different but at a later stage found to be the same (but also there being another species with that name) so any previously used names are shown to indicate this. This has been happening a lot with insects too, the first name takes priority so there's been a lot of name changing lately as DNA research often proves them to be different.

http://sites.google.com/site/f...

bonitin said:It is hard to say from the herbarium images in what the leaves are different, being all shrivelled up..

Strange when I looked earlier for Emilia in the Flora do Brasil it didn't show up anything, but now it shows up two species;
Emilia fosbergii and Emilia sonchifolia ??

Emilia coccinea isn't listed in Brazil, and if you look at the foliage on the Flora SBS site you can see it's more elongated and jagged.

The two species are listed on the Flora Brazil site, I found them then didn't second time but then realised they are under " trib. Senecioneae. "

Actually it's the other way around Myriam,

Yes, I'm sorry to be confusing, I actually meant it the other way around!
But I'm very puzzled with:

Emilia coccinea is a synonym of Emilia fosbergii but that doesn't mean they are the same plant, it means that at some time in history the same plant has born a different name.

It means then that at some times it is the same plant as the synonym and at other times not?
Maybe my brain is getting too rusty..

Lol, let me try again. Let's say person A names the plant Emilia fosbergii. Some time later, person B finds the same plant and thinks yes, this looks like Emilia coccinea so he names it that (assuming E. coccinea had already been discovered and named at that point).

Later in history, somebody else studies these two findings and finds that person B didn't actually find Emilia coccinea but in fact he had found Emilia fosbergii. So, because the plant has been named E. coccinea at some stage, then it is added to the true species name which is Emilia fosbergii (being the first named) as a synonym.

oh I didn't know that! I have been in the illusion until now that a synonym was just another name for the same plant! It very clear now!
Thanks Janet!