Armeria pungens - Sea rose - (Plumbaginaceae)

This pretty plant is a close relative of Thrift (Armeria maritima) which flowers in dense, bright pink mats in early spring in the UK.

Armeria pungens

This pretty flower is also known as the love plant and, less romantically, as spiny thrift. A member of the Thrift family (Plumbaginaceae), it can be found along the coast of Portugal, southern Spain, Corsica and Sardinia in stable sand dunes, coastal meadows and alongside footpaths on the cliff tops. It flowers from April to July.

This specimen was photographed in the Algarve in Portugal in May.