This occurs mostly in east-central states. In its broader sense, helianthoides is a widespread eastern species (2n = 28), but with a relatively distinct segregate in southeastern regions (gracilis) and a less clear-cut segregate in midwestern regions (scabra). See notes under scabra. Heliopsis helianthoides is sometimes confused with Helianthus decapetalus, which has similar leaves, but it has been treated in a distinct subtribe: Ecliptinae versus Helianthinae (FNA 21). Heliopsis in general differs from Helianthus in its lack of pappus (versus two awns), its persistent rays (versus deciduous from achenes), which have a more orange-yellow color (versus plain yellow), its more conical receptacles (versus convex to flat), its relatively short, appressed, ovate involucral bracts, about equalling the disc (versus usually long-attentuate, spreading, exceeding the disc), and its glabrous to short-hairy peduncle summits (versus with distinctly longer hairs confluent onto bract margins). Larger leaves of H. helianthoides are truncate to subcordate (versus cuneate to truncate).