| Ranunculus allenii | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Ranunculus |
| Species: | R. allenii |
| Binomial name | |
| Ranunculus allenii | |
Ranunculus allenii, commonly known as Allen's buttercup, is a flowering plant in the crowfoot or buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. Generally found in wetlands in northern latitudes, it bears yellow flowers in summer, which are pollinated by insects. [1]
Ranunculus allenii was first described by American botanist Benjamin Lincoln Robinson in 1905, who noted collections in Quebec and Labrador, the first being by one John Alpheus Allen on 23 July 1881 on Mount Albert in the Gaspé Peninsula. Previously it had been treated as R. affinis or R. pedatifidis , or a larger form of R. pygmaeus . Robinson named the species in honour of its first collector. [2]
Ranunculus allenii grows to about 9 to 20 cm (3.5 to 8 in) in length, and is a perennial herb that is caespitose (grows in dense clumps). The roots are filiform (very thin in diameter), approximately 0.2 to 0.8 mm thick. Ranunculus allenii grows from a caudex (a thick short stem at ground level), with trichomes that either lay flat or spread out. Its basal leaves are mostly reniform (kidney shaped) and marcescent, while the cauline leaves (leaves of the stem) are linear and are positioned alternately. The petioles connecting the leaf blade to the stem are about 50 to 80 mm long. Leaf blades are flat, about 14 to 21 mm in length and 17 to 28 mm in width, and have a smooth surface on top but are pubescent beneath. The leaf veins are palmate, meaning several veins arise from a single point near the petiole attachment. [3]
The flowers can be either solitary or in an inflorescence of 2 to 4 medium-sized flowers. Each flower has 5 sepals that are about 2 to 3 mm long and 4 to 6 mm wide, the calyx is covered with small, white or translucent hairs, and has 5 yellow, obovate, petals that are about 4 to 5 mm long and 2 to 4 mm wide. Each flower has about 20–30 stamens with filaments that are smooth. Further, it has ovate nectaries, a hairy receptacle that is 3 to 5 mm long, about 60 to 80 apocarpous (free) carpels. There is only one ovule and stigma per ovary, the styles are straight, and the fruit stalk, 4 to 7 mm long, is dry. [3]
Allen's buttercup lives in North America, primarily in low-arctic areas. Its distribution in Canada is limited to Labrador, Nunavut, Quebec and the Arctic Archipelago. [4] Unfortunately, its range is decreasing at this time. [4]
Ranunculus allenii is a perennial plant that grows mainly in wet environments, for example, wet meadows, marshes, and streams. However, it occasionally inhabits gravelly and sandy sites with little organic soil. [5]
There is little-to-no information on human use of Allen's buttercup, perhaps because it is poisonous and may cause skin irritations, as is characteristic of several other members of the genus Ranunculus . [6] Other members of the Ranunculaceae are also known to cause chemical burns by acting as DNA polymerase inhibitors. [7]
Aside from these potentially harmful effects, this plant may have been used as a traditional medicine. Aboriginal peoples of British Columbia used buttercup leaves and juice for treating for boils, skin sores, muscular pain, colds and respiratory ailments. [6] The leaves and juice of Bulbous buttercup, which is also a member of the Ranunculaceae, have similarly been used for medical purposes and the root is edible after it is boiled. [8]
Due to the structure of the buttercup flowers, they are often pollinated by insects. Their petals have lines that direct insect pollinators to the nectar, while directing them across the sticky pollen grains [9] The time of year that they bloom also plays a role in which insects will pollinate them; other members of the Ranunculaceae flower in mid-July. [10] The Ranunculaceae also reproduce by agamospermy, the production of seeds asexually, which ensures that these plants can quickly fill habitats if a single parent plant colonizes. [11]
Ranunculus allenii is listed on the Natureserve Global Conservation Status as G3 or vulnerable . This means it is at moderate risk of extinction owing to its restricted range, relatively few populations (<80), recent and widespread declines, or other factors. [12] Allen's Buttercup is also listed as a candidate by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). [13]
This plant grows primarily in a protected area. [12] Allen's Buttercup is in the GAP 1 and GAP 2 categories of lands, which means that lands are explicitly protected for biodiversity, which will be beneficial for future survival of this plant. [14]
Chromosome information: 2n = 32. Polyploidy levels have been recorded at 2N–12N. [4]
Ranunculus is a large genus of about almost 1700 to more than 1800 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae. Members of the genus are known as buttercups, spearworts and water crowfoots.
Ranunculus repens, the creeping buttercup, is a flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to Europe, Asia and northwestern Africa. It is also called creeping crowfoot and sitfast.
Anemonoides nemorosa, the wood anemone, is an early-spring flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to Europe. Other common names include windflower, European thimbleweed, and smell fox, an allusion to the musky smell of the leaves. It is a perennial herbaceous plant growing 5–15 cm (2–6 in) tall.
Caltha palustris, known as marsh-marigold and kingcup, is a small to medium size perennial herbaceous plant of the buttercup family, native to marshes, fens, ditches and wet woodland in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It flowers between April and August, dependent on altitude and latitude, but occasional flowers may occur at other times.
Caltha is a genus of rhizomatous perennial flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, to which ten species have been assigned. They occur in moist environments in temperate and cold regions of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Their leaves are generally heart-shaped or kidney-shaped, or are characteristically diplophyllous. Flowers are star shaped and mostly yellow to white. True petals and nectaries are missing but the five or more sepals are distinctly colored. As usual in the buttercup family there is a circle of stamens around free carpels.
Ranunculus bulbosus, commonly known as bulbous buttercup or St. Anthony's turnip, is a perennial flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. It has bright yellow flowers, and deeply divided, three-lobed long-petioled basal leaves.
Geranium bicknellii is a species of geranium known by the common names Bicknell's cranesbill and northern cranesbill. It is native to much of the northern half of North America, where it can be found in a number of forest and woodland habitats. This is an annual or biennial herb which grows hairy stems up to about half a meter long. It may be erect or lie near the ground. Each leaf is several centimeters long and wide and is divided into several lobes, each of which may have smaller lobes or teeth. Flowers grow singly or in pairs and have pointed sepals and small lavender petals, each with a notch in the tip. The fruit has a rounded body with a long, straight style about 2 centimeters in length and tipped with a small beak.
Ranunculus eschscholtzii is a species of buttercup flower known by the common name Eschscholtz's buttercup.
Ranunculus recurvatus, the blisterwort or hooked crowfoot, is a plant species of the genus Ranunculus in the family Ranunculaceae native to eastern North America. It is an early-flowering plant of moist deciduous woods from central Quebec south to Florida.
Ranunculus pedatifidus is a species of buttercup known by the common names surefoot buttercup, northern buttercup, and birdfoot buttercup. It has a circumpolar distribution, occurring throughout the northern latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two varieties, var. pedatifidus occurring mostly in Asia and var. affinis mostly native to North America.
Ranunculus abortivus is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. Its common names include littleleaf buttercup, small-flower crowfoot, small-flowered buttercup, and kidneyleaf buttercup. It is widespread across much of North America, found in all ten Canadian provinces as well as Yukon and the Northwest Territories, and most of the United States, except Hawaii, Oregon, California, and parts of the Southwest.
Pyrola grandiflora (pronunciation , commonly known as Arctic wintergreen or largeflowered wintergreen, is a hardy perennial evergreen subshrub in the family Ericaceae. It is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere from temperate to tundra-like climates.
Rubus flagellaris, the northern dewberry, also known as the common dewberry, is a North American species perennial subshrub species of dewberry, in the rose family. This dewberry is distributed across much of Canada, Mexico, and the United States. It grows in diverse habitats ranging from drier savannas to temperate deciduous forests.
Ranunculus acraeus is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, found in New Zealand. This rare and native species strictly grows on an alpine habitat, hence the name acraeus, meaning “on high”. The plant grows about 50 cm (20 in) in width, and is covered in beautiful, bright yellow flowers. It may be mistaken for R. piliferus but research has shown R. acraeus to be its own distinctive species.
Ranunculus acaulis, in Australia and New Zealand called dune buttercup, sand buttercup or shore buttercup, is a yellow-flowered, small, fleshy herb, that grows in mats in damp places mostly near the sea. It occurs naturally in Australia, New Zealand, Chile and the Falklands. It flowers between August and April and sets seed from September till July.
Ranunculus hispidus is a species of perennial flowering plant in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. It is commonly known as bristly buttercup or hispid buttercup. It is a small plant native to central and eastern North America that grows to a height up to 30 cm (1 ft) and has 5-petaled yellow flowers.
Ranunculus allegheniensis is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. Its common names include Allegheny Mountain buttercup and Allegheny crowfoot.
Ranunculus arcticus, the birdfoot buttercup, is a species of buttercup in the family Ranunculaceae. It has a circumpolar distribution in Northern Europe, Northern Asia and North America.
Ranunculus tripartitus, three-lobed crowfoot, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, which grows in pools and muddy hollows in coastal parts of Europe, North Africa and West Asia. It is rare and endangered throughout its range, and is considered to be an indicator of favourable environmental conditions.
Ranunculus adoneus, the alpine buttercup or snow buttercup, is a species of flowering plant. It is an alpine buttercup from the family Ranunculaceae. This species is mainly found in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado and Wyoming but can also be found in Idaho, northern Utah and eastern Nevada. Its typical habitat is short grass meadows near the edge of melting snow.