parent_taxon crassocephalum
Niger ( or ), officially the Republic of Niger , is a landlocked country in Western Africa , named after the Niger River . Niger is bordered by Libya to the northeast , Chad to the east , Nigeria and Benin to the south , Burkina Faso and Mali to the west , and Algeria to the northwest . Niger covers a land ___MASK32___ of almost 1 , 270 , 000 km , making it the largest country in West Africa , with over 80 percent of its land ___MASK32___ covered by the Sahara Desert . The country ' s predominantly Islamic population of about 19 million is mostly clustered in the far south and west of the country . The capital city is Niamey , located in the far - southwest corner of Niger . Crassocephalum is a genus the common names of whose members include ragleaf , thickhead , and bologi . Several species are raised as leaf vegetables and used for medicine , especially in West Africa . Similar to ___MASK30___ , but differing in never having ray florets . A calyculus of short bracts ( c . 1 / 4 to 1 / 5 of the length of the inner phyllaries ) is present . The genus is typically thistle - like in appearance , but all parts are soft and not spiny . Binomial nomenclature ( also called binominal nomenclature or binary nomenclature ) is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts , both of which use Latin grammatical forms , although they can be based on words from other languages . Such a name is called a binomial name ( which may be shortened to just " binomial "), a binomen or a scientific name ; more informally it is also called a Latin name . The first part of the name identifies the genus to which the species belongs ; the second part identifies the species within the genus . For example , humans belong to the genus " ___MASK47___ " and within this genus to the species " ___MASK47___ sapiens ". The " formal " introduction of this system of naming species is credited to Carl Linnaeus , effectively beginning with his work " Species Plantarum " in 1753 . But Gaspard Bauhin , in as early as 1623 , had introduced in his book " Pinax theatri botanici " ( English , " Illustrated exposition of plants ") many names of genera that were later adopted by Linnaeus . West Africa , also called Western Africa and the West of Africa , is the westernmost subregion of Africa . West Africa has been defined as including 18 countries : Benin , Burkina Faso , the island nation of Cape Verde , Gambia , Ghana , Guinea , Guinea - Bissau , Ivory Coast , Liberia , Mali , Mauritania , Niger , Nigeria , the island of Saint Helena , Senegal , Sierra Leone , São Tomé and Príncipe and Togo . In biology , an organism is any contiguous living system , such as an ___MASK19___ , plant , fungus , archaeon , or bacterium . All known types of organisms are capable of some degree of response to stimuli , reproduction , growth and development and homeostasis . An organism consists of one or more cells ; when it has one cell it is known as a unicellular organism ; and when it has more than one it is known as a multicellular organism . Most unicellular organisms are of microscopic scale and are thus loosely described as microorganisms . Humans are multicellular organisms composed of many trillions of cells grouped into specialized tissues and organs . Africa is the world ' s second - largest and second - most - populous continent . At about 30 . 3 million km² ( 11 . 7 million square miles ) including adjacent islands , it covers 6 % of Earth ' s total surface ___MASK32___ and 20 . 4 % of its total land ___MASK32___ . With 1 . 1 billion people as of 2013 , it accounts for about 15 % of the world ' s ___MASK34___ population . The continent is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north , both the Suez Canal and the Red Sea along the Sinai Peninsula to the northeast , the Indian Ocean to the southeast , and the Atlantic Ocean to the west . The continent includes Madagascar and various archipelagos . It contains 54 fully recognized sovereign states ( countries ), nine territories and two " de facto " independent states with limited or no recognition . Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone , is a country in West Africa . It is bordered by Guinea on the north , Liberia in the south - east , and the Atlantic Ocean in the south - west . Sierra Leone has a tropical climate , with a diverse environment ranging from savannah to rainforests . Sierra Leone has a total ___MASK32___ of and a population of 7 , 075 , 641 ( based on 2015 national census ). Saint Helena is a volcanic tropical island in the South Atlantic Ocean , east of Rio de Janeiro and west of the Cunene River , which marks the border between ___MASK4___ and Angola in southwestern Africa . It is part of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena , Ascension and Tristan da Cunha . Saint Helena measures about and has a population of 4 , 534 ( 2016 census ). It was named after Saint Helena of Constantinople . Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country on the West coast of Africa . Formerly known as French Guinea , the modern country is sometimes referred to as Guinea - Conakry in order to distinguish it from other parts of the wider region of the same name , such as Guinea - Bissau and Equatorial Guinea . Guinea has a population of 10 . 5 million and an ___MASK32___ of . ___MASK30___ is a genus of the daisy family ( ___MASK97___ ) that includes ragworts and groundsels . The scientific Latin genus name , " ___MASK30___ ", means " old man ." West is one of the four ___MASK46___ directions or points of the compass . It is the opposite direction from east . Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Africa . Mali is the eighth - largest country in Africa , with an ___MASK32___ of just over . The population of Mali is 14 . 5 million . Its capital is Bamako . Mali consists of eight regions and its borders on the north reach deep into the middle of the Sahara Desert , while the country ' s southern part , where the majority of inhabitants live , features the Niger and Senegal rivers . The country ' s economy centers on agriculture and fishing . Some of Mali ' s prominent natural resources include gold , being the third largest producer of gold in the African continent , and salt . About half the population lives below the international poverty line of $ 1 . 25 ( U . S .) a day . A majority of the population ( 90 %) are Muslims . Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in West Africa . Senegal is bordered by Mauritania in the north , Mali to the east , Guinea to the southeast , and Guinea - Bissau to the southwest . Senegal also borders The Gambia , a country occupying a narrow sliver of land along the banks of the Gambia River , which separates Senegal ' s southern region of Casamance from the rest of the country . Senegal also shares a maritime border with Cape Verde . Senegal ' s economic and political capital is Dakar . It is the westernmost country in the mainland of the Old World , or Afro - Eurasia , and owes its name to the Senegal River , which borders it to the east and north . The name " Senegal " comes from the Wolof " Sunuu Gaal ", which means " Our Boat ". Senegal covers a land ___MASK32___ of almost and has an estimated population of about 13 million . The climate is Sahelian , but there is a rainy season . Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia , is a country on the West African coast . Liberia means " Land of the Free " in Latin . It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its west , Guinea to its north and Ivory Coast to its east . It covers an ___MASK32___ of and has a population of 4 , 503 , 000 people . English is the official language and over 20 indigenous languages are spoken , representing the numerous tribes who make up more than 95 % of the population . The country ' s capital and largest city is Monrovia . A genus ( genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms in biology . In the hierarchy of biological classification , genus comes above species and below family . In binomial nomenclature , the genus name forms the first part of the binomial species name for each species within the genus . ___MASK97___ or Compositae ( commonly referred to as the aster , daisy , composite , or sunflower family ) is an exceedingly large and widespread family of flowering plants ( Angiospermae ). Benin ( or -; ), officially the Republic of Benin and formerly Dahomey , is a country in West Africa . It is bordered by Togo to the west , Nigeria to the east , and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north . A majority of the population live on its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin , part of the Gulf of Guinea in the northernmost tropical portion of the Atlantic Ocean . The capital of Benin is Porto - Novo , but the seat of government is in Cotonou , the country ' s largest city and economic capital . Benin covers an ___MASK32___ of 114 , 763 square kilometers and its population in 2015 was estimated to be approximately 10 . 88 million . Benin is a tropical , sub - Saharan nation , highly dependent on agriculture , with substantial employment and income arising from subsistence farming . Cape Verde or Cabo Verde ,, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 10 volcanic islands in the central Atlantic Ocean . Located off the coast of West Africa , the islands cover a combined ___MASK32___ of slightly over .