Ranunculus glaberrimus |
Ranunculus macauleyi |
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sagebrush buttercup, smooth buttercup |
Rocky Mountain buttercup |
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Roots | cylindric, 1-3 mm thick. |
slender, 0.7-1.3 mm thick. |
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Stems | prostrate or ascending, 4-15 cm, glabrous, each with 1-4 flowers. |
erect from short caudices, 6-15 cm, glabrous or sometimes pilose, each with 1-2 flowers. |
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Basal leaves | persistent, blades reniform or obovate to very narrowly elliptic, 0.7-5.2 × 1-2 cm, base truncate, obtuse or attenuate, margins entire or with 3 broad, apical crenae, apex rounded to acute. |
persistent, blades narrowly elliptic to lanceolate or oblanceolate, undivided, 1.5-4.5 × 0.5-1.1(-2.8) cm, base acute or long-attenuate, margins entire except for apex, apex truncate or rounded and 3(-5)-toothed. |
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Flowers | pedicels glabrous or nearly so; receptacle glabrous; sepals 5-8 × 3-7 mm, abaxially glabrous or sparsely pilose, hairs colorless; petals 5-10, 8-13 × 5-12 mm; nectary scale glabrous or ciliate. |
pedicels glabrous or brown-pilose; receptacle glabrous; sepals 6-12 × 2.5-8 mm, abaxially densely brown-pilose; petals 5(-8), 10-19 × 6-17 mm; nectary scale glabrous. |
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Heads of achenes | globose, 7-12(-20) × 6-11(-20) mm; achenes 1.4-2.2 × 1.1-1.8 mm, usually finely pubescent; beak subulate or lance-subulate, straight or curved, 0.4-1 mm. |
ovoid or cylindric, 5-10 × 4-5.5 mm; achenes 1.5-1.7 × 1.2-1.3 mm, glabrous; beak slender, straight or recurved, 0.5-1.5(-2.2) mm. |
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Ranunculus glaberrimus |
Ranunculus macauleyi |
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Phenology | Flowering late spring–summer (Jun–Aug). | |||||
Habitat | Sunny open soil of alpine meadows and slopes | |||||
Elevation | 3300-3700 m (10800-12100 ft) | |||||
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CO; ID; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; OR; SD; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC; SK
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CO; NM
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Discussion | Varieties 2 (2 in the flora). Usually only a minority of the ovaries develop, and the fruiting receptacle is completely hidden by aborted ovaries. Populations growing at high elevations (Ranunculus glaberrimus var. ellipticus) and low elevations (var. glaberrimus) are usually well differentiated, but these varieties intergrade at intermediate elevations. The Thompson Indians rubbed the flowers or the whole plant of Ranunculus glaberrimus on arrow points as a poison (D. E. Moerman 1986). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
The type specimen of Ranunculus macauleyi var. brandegeei L. D. Benson, from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Colorado, differs from typical R. macauleyi in its tall stem, broad, crenate-laciniate leaves, and sepals with pale or transparent hairs. These characteristics are suggestive of R. inamoenus, and the plant may be of hybrid ancestry. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 3. | FNA vol. 3. | ||||
Parent taxa | Ranunculaceae > Ranunculus > subg. Ranunculus > sect. Epirotes | Ranunculaceae > Ranunculus > subg. Ranunculus > sect. Epirotes | ||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||
Name authority | Hooker: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 12. (1829) | A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 15: 45. (1879) | ||||
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