Although "M. coriacea" mostly has solitary or 2-headed synflorescences while "M. burchellii" usually has corymbosely arranged capitula, solitary capitula are also sometimes found in "M. burchellii". "Mairia burchellii" can be found in the wild only in the southwest of the Western Cape province of South Africa, from Ceres and the Piketberg in the north to the southern tip of the Cape Peninsula in the west, through the Hottentots Holland Mountains, east to Bredasdorp on the Angulhas plains. It grows in fynbos vegetation, on stony and sandy plateaus and mountain slopes. The continued survival of "Mairia burchellii" is considered to be of least concern, because it has a stable population that is widespread in mountainous areas and where it is not threatened.