This member of the Euphorbiaceae family was described by Werner Rauh and Herman Pétignat in 1996. It is found on the southern tip of Madagascar, growing in well drained soil with some water and lots of sun. The caudex can grow to five centimetres in diameter, the plant to 25 centimetres height.

The genera name; Euphorbia dates back to the first century BC, where King Juba II of Mauritania used it in a reference to his doctor, Euphorbos, and that name was kept as a generic name by Carl von Linnaeus. The species name from after Mme Suzanna Marnier-Lapostolle, directrice of Jardin Botanique Les Cedres, France.