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Bloomer's buttercup, straight-beak buttercup, swamp buttercup

Allen's buttercup, renoncule d'Allen

Roots

sometimes fleshy and ± tuberous.

slender, 0.2-0.8 mm thick.

Stems

nearly erect or decumbent, never rooting nodally, hispid, strigose, or glabrous, base not bulbous.

erect or ascending, 5-19 cm, sparsely pilose, each with 1-4 flowers.

Basal leaves

blades narrowly ovate to oblong or semicircular in outline, simple to 3-5-lobed or -foliolate, 2.8-12.5 × 2.5-14 cm, leaflets or segments undivided or 1-2x-lobed or -parted, ultimate segments circular to linear, margins dentate, crenate, or entire, apex rounded to narrowly acute.

persistent, blades reniform or semicircular, undivided or some 3-parted, 1.4-2.1 × 1.7-2.8 cm, base cordate or truncate, margins crenate with more than 5 crenae, apex rounded.

Flowers

receptacle hispid;

sepals reflexed 1-2 mm above base, 5-11 × 2-4 mm, hispid, hirsute, or glabrous;

petals 5-6, abaxially yellow or red, adaxially yellow, 8-18 × 4-11 mm.

pedicels pilose, sometimes sparsely so;

receptacle hispid;

sepals 4-6 × 2-3 mm, abaxially pilose, hairs colorless;

petals 5, 4-5 × 2-4 mm;

nectary scale glabrous.

Heads of achenes

hemispheric to ovoid, 5-13 × 6-10 mm;

achenes 2.8-4.5 × 1.8-3.2 mm, glabrous, margin forming narrow rib 0.1-0.2 mm wide;

beak persistent, narrowly lanceolate to subulate, straight, 1.8-3.8(-4.8) mm.

ovoid to cylindric, 4-7 × 4-6 mm;

achenes 1.6-1.8 × 1.2-1.4 mm, glabrous;

beak lance-subulate, curved, 0.4-0.6 mm.

2n

= 32.

Ranunculus orthorhynchus

Ranunculus allenii

Phenology Flowering summer (Jul–Aug).
Habitat Wet alpine meadows, often around late snowbeds, shores of lakes and streams
Elevation 700-1300 m (2300-4300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
NF; NT; QC
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 3

The first two varieties (Ranunculus orthorhynchus var. orthorhynchus and R. orthorhynchus var. platyphyllus) are rather weak, intergrading extensively in California and Oregon. By contrast, R. orthorhynchus var. bloomeri often grows with the others with little or no intergradation (although intermediate populations are found in some areas), and it has been treated as a distinct species, R. bloomeri, by many taxonomists.

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

Key
1. Basal leaves simple or 3-foliolate, if compound then leaflets undivided, margins crenate; petals retuse.
var. bloomeri
1. Basal leaves 3–5-foliolate, leaflets lobed or parted, margins entire or dentate; petals truncate or rounded.
→ 2
2. Heads of achenes hemispheric or sometimes globose, 5–7 mm; petals often abaxially red.
var. orthorhynchus
2. Heads of achenes globose or ovoid, 8–13 mm; petals yellow.
var. platyphyllus
Source FNA vol. 3. FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa Ranunculaceae > Ranunculus > subg. Ranunculus > sect. Ranunculus Ranunculaceae > Ranunculus > subg. Ranunculus > sect. Epirotes
Sibling taxa
R. abortivus, R. acriformis, R. acris, R. adoneus, R. alismifolius, R. allegheniensis, R. allenii, R. ambigens, R. andersonii, R. aquatilis, R. arizonicus, R. arvensis, R. auricomus, R. austro-oreganus, R. bonariensis, R. bulbosus, R. californicus, R. canus, R. cardiophyllus, R. cooleyae, R. cymbalaria, R. eschscholtzii, R. fascicularis, R. fasciculatus, R. ficaria, R. flabellaris, R. flammula, R. gelidus, R. glaberrimus, R. glacialis, R. gmelinii, R. gormanii, R. harveyi, R. hebecarpus, R. hederaceus, R. hispidus, R. hydrocharoides, R. hyperboreus, R. hystriculus, R. inamoenus, R. jovis, R. kamtschaticus, R. lapponicus, R. laxicaulis, R. lobbii, R. macauleyi, R. macounii, R. macranthus, R. marginatus, R. micranthus, R. muricatus, R. nivalis, R. occidentalis, R. oresterus, R. pacificus, R. pallasii, R. parviflorus, R. pedatifidus, R. pensylvanicus, R. platensis, R. populago, R. pusillus, R. pygmaeus, R. ranunculinus, R. recurvatus, R. repens, R. rhomboideus, R. sabinei, R. sardous, R. sceleratus, R. sulphureus, R. testiculatus, R. trilobus, R. triternatus, R. turneri, R. uncinatus
R. abortivus, R. acriformis, R. acris, R. adoneus, R. alismifolius, R. allegheniensis, R. ambigens, R. andersonii, R. aquatilis, R. arizonicus, R. arvensis, R. auricomus, R. austro-oreganus, R. bonariensis, R. bulbosus, R. californicus, R. canus, R. cardiophyllus, R. cooleyae, R. cymbalaria, R. eschscholtzii, R. fascicularis, R. fasciculatus, R. ficaria, R. flabellaris, R. flammula, R. gelidus, R. glaberrimus, R. glacialis, R. gmelinii, R. gormanii, R. harveyi, R. hebecarpus, R. hederaceus, R. hispidus, R. hydrocharoides, R. hyperboreus, R. hystriculus, R. inamoenus, R. jovis, R. kamtschaticus, R. lapponicus, R. laxicaulis, R. lobbii, R. macauleyi, R. macounii, R. macranthus, R. marginatus, R. micranthus, R. muricatus, R. nivalis, R. occidentalis, R. oresterus, R. orthorhynchus, R. pacificus, R. pallasii, R. parviflorus, R. pedatifidus, R. pensylvanicus, R. platensis, R. populago, R. pusillus, R. pygmaeus, R. ranunculinus, R. recurvatus, R. repens, R. rhomboideus, R. sabinei, R. sardous, R. sceleratus, R. sulphureus, R. testiculatus, R. trilobus, R. triternatus, R. turneri, R. uncinatus
Subordinate taxa
R. orthorhynchus var. bloomeri, R. orthorhynchus var. orthorhynchus, R. orthorhynchus var. platyphyllus
Name authority Hooker: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 21. (1829) B. L. Robinson: Rhodora 7: 220. (1905)
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