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Zygophyllum fontanesii Webb & Berthel.

Z. webbianum Coss., Tetraena fontanesii (Webb & Berthel.) Beier & Thulin.

Spa.: Morsana, uva de mar común.   Ara.: Äggaya, bu griba, tartir, haaka, khoressa, ensal, qillam, r’ardem.   Tam.: Tayerta, tazluzt, haggaïa, tirta, moïlhe.

Evergreen shrub, hermaphrodite, with branches spreading in all directions forming a hemisphere up to about 50 cm in diameter. Stems narrow, articulated, knotted and brownish. Branches ascending, subcylindrical, pruinose-tomentose, alternate and with many leaves. Leaves arranged at the nodes of the branches, opposite or alternate, c. 7-12 mm long, bifoliolate. Leaflets thick, globose, widened at the apex, appendiculate, v-shaped, with sericeous tomentum, green to yellow or even orange, often spotted at the stomata. Stipules small, membranous, subamplexicaul, tomentose, acute. Flowers in axillary groups. Pedicels straight, tomentose, 7 mm, thickened. Sepals laciniate, tomentose on the upper side and glabrous on the underside, with scarious-transparent margins, concave, acuminate, c. 4.6 × 2.3 mm. Petals, similar in size to the sepals, slender, hyaline, white to purplish, ovate-lanceolate, apices subacuminate to crenate-dentate, petals attenuated into a claw. Scales of the filaments, subacuminate and irregularly crenate-dentate. Fruit a schizocarp, 9 × 5.7 mm, rounded, subglobose, thick, glabrous, ranging from green to orange in colour, dehiscent into 5 valves. Seeds ovoid, acute, black, tolerant of salt water.