Resumo Verbesina é um gênero americano de cerca de 300 espécies com maior diversidade no México e Andes. É constituído por representantes subarbustivos a arbóreos, de filotaxia alterna a oposta, lâminas inteiras, pinatifidas a pinatipartidas, capitulescência corimboide, capítulos discoides ou radiados e cipselas aladas e aristadas. Os objetivos deste estudo foram realizar o levantamento das espécies brasileiras de Verbesina, avaliar caracteres úteis para diferenciá-las e as suas circunscrições morfológicas e contribuir para o conhecimento das mesmas através da apresentação de descrições, ilustrações, chave de identificação e comentários taxonômicos e ecológicos. O levantamento a campo e o estudo de espécimes de herbário permitiu o reconhecimento de nove espécies para o Brasil, com ocorrência em todo o país, exceto a região Norte, em ambientes de matas ciliares e de altitude.Cinco das nove espécies de Verbesina (V. baccharifolia, V. bipinnatifida, V. floribunda, V. luetzelburgii e V. nicotianifolia) são exclusivas do Brasil, sendo V. baccharifolia e V. luetzelburgii endêmicas da Bahia. Verbesina bipinnatifida é registrada pela primeira vez para o Espírito Santo e V. subdiscoidea para o Mato Grosso do Sul.

Abstract Verbesina is an American genus of about 300 species with greater diversity in Mexico and the Andes. It is constituted by subshrubs and tree representatives, of alternate to opposite leaves, with entire to pinatipartids blades, capitulescence corymboid, capitulae discoid or radiated and cypselas winged and aristate.The objectives of this study were to perform the survey of the Brazilian Verbesina species, evaluate their circumscriptions and contribute to their knowledge through the presentation of descriptions, illustrations, identification key and ecological and taxonomic comments. The field survey and the study of herbarium specimens allowed the recognition of nine species for Brazil, occurring throughout the country, except for the North region, in environments of riparian and altitude forests. Five of the nine species of Verbesina (V. baccharifolia, V. bipinnatifida, V. floribunda, V. luetzelburgii and V. nicotianifolia) are exclusive to Brazil, with V. baccharifolia and V. luetzelburgii endemic to Bahia. Verbesina bipinnatifida is recorded for the first time for the Espírito Santo and V. subdiscoidea for Mato Grosso do Sul.

Abstract There are nine species of the plant genus Verbesina in Brazil, which are distributed in the Northeast, Center-West, Southeast and South regions of the country. The objective of the present study was to describe the pollinic morphology of eight of these species to better characterize them and evaluate potential species-level taxonomic characters. Acetolysed pollen material was measured within seven days under light microscopy, while non-acetolyzsed pollen grains were used for scanning electronic microscopy. The pollen grains were found to be oblate-spheroidal, medium-sized, isopolar, monads that are 3-colporate with a subtriangular amb, a small polar area, a long colpus, a lalongate endoaperture, a caveate exine and an echinate sexine. Although the shape of the pollen grains of these Brazilian species of Verbesina is homogeneous, some attributes were observed to be useful for characterizing the species, such as exine thickness, distance between spines and side of the apocolpus.