Plants in the genus Ptilotus are annual or perennial herbs or shrubs with usually hairy spikes of compact spherical, oval or cylindrical flowers.

Plants in the genus Ptilotus are annual or perennial herbs or small shrubs, many covered with soft hairs.

[3][4][5] The genus Ptilotus was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown in his Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae.

[9] It has been resolved as monophyletic and is closely related to Aerva Forssk.

[10][11] Most species of Ptilotus occur in arid parts of Western Australia,[5][10][12] but there are species in the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.