Flora of North America species comparison

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Aquilegia flavescens

Aquilegia chrysantha

yellow columbine

golden columbine
Stems

20-70 cm.

30-120 cm.
Basal leaves

2x-ternately compound, 8-30 cm, much shorter than stems;

leaflets green adaxially, to 14-42 mm, not viscid;

primary petiolules to 13-67 mm (leaflets not crowded), glabrous or pilose.

2-3x-ternately compound, 9-45 cm, much shorter than stems;

leaflets green adaxially, to 11-55 mm, not viscid;

primary petiolules 20-50 mm (leaflets not crowded), glabrous or distally pilose.
Flowers

nodding;

sepals perpendicular to floral axis, yellow or tinged with pink, elliptic-lanceolate to oblong, 12-22 × 4-10 mm, apex obtuse to acute or sometimes acuminate;

petals: spurs yellow, tips incurved, 10-18 mm, stout, evenly tapered from base or more abruptly narrowed near middle, blades cream colored, oblong, 7-10 × 4-8 mm;

stamens 12-17 mm.

erect;

sepals perpendicular to floral axis, yellow, lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, 20-36 × 5-10 mm, apex narrowly acute or acuminate;

petals: spurs yellow, straight, ± parallel or divergent, 42-65 mm, slender, evenly tapered from base, blades yellow, oblong, 13-23 × 6-15 mm;

stamens 12-25 mm.
Follicles

18-27 mm;

beak 8-10 mm.

18-30 mm;

beak 10-18 mm.

Aquilegia flavescens

Aquilegia chrysantha
Phenology Flowering summer (Jun–Aug). Flowering spring–summer (Apr–Sep).
Habitat Moist mountain meadows and alpine slopes Damp places in canyons
Elevation 1300-3500 m (4300-11500 ft) 1000-3500 m (3300-11500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; MT; OR; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CO; NM; TX; UT; nw Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Aquilegia flavescens sometimes forms hybrid swarms with A. formosa var. formosa, which grows at lower elevations through much of its range. Intermediate specimens having pinkish red flowers and petal blades 5-6 mm are occasionally found where these species grow together. The name A. flavescens var. miniana has sometimes been mistakenly applied to these intermediates, but the type of var. miniana is a typical, pink-sepaled plant of A. flavescens.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Colorado populations supposedly having spurs only 35-40 mm have been called Aquilegia chrysantha var. rydbergii. Material seen from this area falls within the normal range of variation of the species. Populations intermediate between A. chrysantha and A. coerulea var. pinetorum occur in northern Arizona (M. Butterwick et al. 1991).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 3. FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa Ranunculaceae > Aquilegia Ranunculaceae > Aquilegia
Sibling taxa
A. barnebyi, A. brevistyla, A. canadensis, A. chaplinei, A. chrysantha, A. coerulea, A. desertorum, A. elegantula, A. eximia, A. formosa, A. hinckleyana, A. jonesii, A. laramiensis, A. longissima, A. micrantha, A. pubescens, A. saximontana, A. scopulorum, A. shockleyi, A. vulgaris
A. barnebyi, A. brevistyla, A. canadensis, A. chaplinei, A. coerulea, A. desertorum, A. elegantula, A. eximia, A. flavescens, A. formosa, A. hinckleyana, A. jonesii, A. laramiensis, A. longissima, A. micrantha, A. pubescens, A. saximontana, A. scopulorum, A. shockleyi, A. vulgaris
Synonyms A. flavescens var. miniana A. chrysantha var. rydbergii
Name authority S. Watson: Botany (Fortieth Parallel), 10. (1871) A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 8: 621. (1873)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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