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

early buttercup, early crowfoot, prairie buttercup, tuft buttercup

Roots

sometimes fleshy and ± tuberous.

always both filiform and tuberous on same stem.

Stems

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

erect or ascending, never rooting nodally, strigose or spreading-strigose, base not bulbous.

Basal leaf

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.

blades ovate to broadly ovate in outline, 3-5-foliolate, 2.1-4.7 × 1.9-4.5 cm, leaflets undivided or 1x-lobed or -parted, ultimate segments oblanceolate or obovate, margins entire or with few teeth, apex rounded-acute to rounded-obtuse.

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.

receptacle hispid or glabrous;

sepals spreading or sometimes reflexed from base, 5-7 × 2-3 mm, hispid or glabrous;

petals 5(-7), yellow, 8-14 × 3-6 mm.

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.

globose or ovoid, 5-9 × 5-8 mm;

achenes 2-2.8 × 1.8-2.2 mm, glabrous, margin forming narrow rib 0.1-0.2 mm wide;

beak persistent, filiform, straight, 1.2-2.8 mm.

2n

= 32.

Ranunculus orthorhynchus

Ranunculus fascicularis

Phenology Flowering winter–spring (Jan–Jun).
Habitat Grassland or deciduous forest
Elevation 0-300 m (0-1000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; MB; ON
[WildflowerSearch map]
[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.)

Ranunculus fascicularis is very similar to R. hispidus var. hispidus, and herbarium specimens without underground parts may be difficult to identify. Ranunculus fascicularis grows in drier habitats; segments of its leaves are commonly oblanceolate and blunt, with few or no marginal teeth; and its petals are widest at or below the middle. Ranunculus hispidus var. hispidus is usually larger in all its parts (leaves, flowers, heads of achenes); leaf segments are variable in shape but their apices are normally sharper and their marginal teeth more numerous, and petals are widest above the middle.

(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. Ranunculus
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. 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. 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
Synonyms R. fascicularis var. apricus
Name authority Hooker: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 21. (1829) Muhlenberg ex J. M. Bigelow: Fl. Boston., 137. (1814)
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