Ranunculus cooleyae |
Ranunculus adoneus |
|
---|---|---|
Cooley's buttercup |
alpine buttercup |
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Roots | slender, 0.8-1.4 mm thick. |
|
Stems | erect from short caudices, not rooting nodally, glabrous, not bulbous-based. |
erect from large caudices, 9-25 cm, glabrous, each with 1-3 flowers. |
Basal leaves | blades circular to reniform in outline, 3-5-parted, 0.8-3.8 × 1.7-6.9 cm, segments again lobed, ultimate segments elliptic or oblong, margins crenate, apex rounded; cauline leaf 0-1, scalelike. |
persistent, blades circular to reniform in outline, 2-3x-dissected into linear segments, 0.9-2.5 × 1.1-2.8 cm, base obtuse, margins entire, apices of segments narrowly rounded to acute. |
Flowers | receptacle glabrous; sepals spreading, yellow, 7-11 × 4-7 mm, glabrous; petals 11-15, yellow, 8-12 × 3-5 mm. |
pedicels glabrous; receptacle glabrous; sepals 4-11 × 3-7 mm, abaxially sparsely pilose, hairs colorless; petals 5-10, 8-15 × 8-19 mm; nectary scale glabrous. |
Heads of achenes | hemispheric or spheric, 7-8 × 9-10 mm; achenes 2.4-4.6 × 1.2-2.2 mm, glabrous; beak persistent, filiform, hooked distally, 1-1.8 mm. |
ovoid, 6-12 × 5-9 mm; achenes 1.8-2.4 × 1-1.4 mm, glabrous or nearly so; beak subulate, straight, 1.2-1.7 mm. |
Tuberous | roots absent. |
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2 | n = 16. |
|
2n | = 16. |
|
Ranunculus cooleyae |
Ranunculus adoneus |
|
Phenology | Flowering late spring–summer (Jun–Aug). | |
Habitat | Slopes near persistent snowbanks | Spring-summer (May–Sep). Alpine and subalpine meadows, usually around melting snowbanks |
Elevation | 500-1800 m (1600-5900 ft) | 2500-4000 m (8200-13100 ft) |
Distribution |
AK; WA; BC
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CO; ID; MT; NV; UT; WY
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Discussion | Most collections of Ranunculus adoneus from Colorado, including the type specimen, tend to be small, with narrow leaf segments (only 0.5-1 mm wide) and large flowers. The more widespread form, with leaf segments 1-2 mm wide and more variable flowers, has been called R. adoneus var. alpinus. The leaf and flower characteristics are very poorly correlated, however, and specimens referable to var. alpinus vary greatly in stature and flower size, so the two forms scarcely merit formal recognition. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
|
Source | FNA vol. 3. | FNA vol. 3. |
Parent taxa | Ranunculaceae > Ranunculus > subg. Cyrtorhyncha > sect. Arcteranthis | Ranunculaceae > Ranunculus > subg. Ranunculus > sect. Epirotes |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Arcteranthis cooleyae, Kumlienia cooleyae | R. adoneus var. alpinus, R. eschscholtzii var. adoneus, R. eschscholtzii var. alpinus |
Name authority | Vasey & Rose ex Rose: Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 1: 289. (1894) | A. Gray: Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 15: 56. (1863) |
Web links |