Cosmos sulphureus Cav. (syn.: Bidens sulphurea Schinz) (Mexico) – An exceptional and ephemeral escape. Recorded in 2015 on ground heaps on the banks of the Schipdonk canal in Merendree, along with other remarkable aliens like Tithonia rotundifolia and Zinnia violacea. In the same locality birdseed aliens were found in quantity. All these plants probably germinated from soil that was contaminated with, among others, wild flower seed mixtures and birdseed.
Cosmos sulphureus had been claimed before as an alien in Belgium but all records proved to be erroneous (Verloove & Lambinon 2008).
This species is rarely recorded as an alien in Europe although it is a regular component in wild flower seed mixtures. It is much more frequent, for instance, in North America (e.g. Kiger 2006).
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Selected literature:
Kiger R.W. (2006) Cosmos. In: Flora of North America Editorial Committee (eds.), Flora of North America, vol. 21. Oxford University Press, New York-Oxford: 203-205. [available online at: http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=108151]
Verloove F. & Lambinon J. (2008) Neophytes in Belgium: corrections and adjustments. Syst. Geogr. Pl. 78: 63-79.