Putnam Park Wildflowers


Flower ID: IMG_0289.JPG-05-07-2017
Flower name (scientific): Ranunculus hispidus André Michaux PY: 1803. Pronunciation guide: (phonetic spelling) ra-NUN-ku-lus (or ra-NUN-kul-us or ruh-NUNK-ew-lus) HIS-pi-dus (or HISS-pih-dus)
Flower name (common): Swamp Buttercup
Family name (common): Buttercup (Crowfoot)
Family name (scientific): Ranunculaceae
Scientific name origin:
     Genus: Latin for little frog. Referencing the moist habitat where many species grow.
    Specific epithet: Bristly with stiff hairs.
Common name origin: Refers to the common habitat and the yellow cup-shaped flowers.
Flower description:
     Size: 0.5 to 1.0 inches (1.3 to 2.5 cm)
     Petal count: 5 usually (up to 12)
     Color: Yellow
     Other: flower arrangement, Solitary
Plant description:
     Size: 6 to 36 inches (15 to 91 cm)
     Stem hairy:
     Other:
Leaf description: attachment is basal and alternate, type is compound
     Size: Basal leaves up to 14 cm long and 17 cm wide. Leaflets up to 8 to 10 cm long and wide.
     Color:
     Hairy:
     Other: Shape: leaf, (basal) 3-foliolate, leaflet, ultimate segments narrowly elliptic or oblanceolate (FNA)
Origin (native, introduced, invasive): Native
Status (common, uncommon, threatened, rare): Common
Bloom time (typical): May to June
Cycle (annual, biennial, perennial): Perennial
Habitat: Forests, prairies, woods, streambanks, marshes, part shade, moist.
Fruit:
Seed:
Importance to wildlife:
Similar species (if any): Ranunculus fascicularis (Early Buttercup) has a resemblance. The latter is generally a smaller plant, about 5 to 12 inches tall, leaflets typically not sharply pointed, whereas Ranunculus hispidus is around 6 to 20 inches tall, and leaflets typically sharply pointed. R. sardous (Hairy Buttercup) also has some resemblance, but this is a more southern species, not reported in Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and Iowa, but present in Illinois. This latter species has a fairly hairy stem, as the common name might suggest.
Ethnobotany: No recorded uses by tribes from Wisconsin. The Iroquois used this plant as a treatment for toothache (Moerman, p. 468, 1998).
Latitude: 44.798443
Longitude: -91.515410
Altitude: 245.70
Distribution: In Wisconsin: (Adams, Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Brown, Buffalo, Calumet, Chippewa, Clark, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dodge, Door, Douglas, Dunn, Eau Claire, Fond du Lac, Forest, Grant, Green, Green Lake, Iowa, Iron, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, Kenosha, Kewaunee, La Crosse, Lafayette, Langlade, Lincoln, Manitowoc, Marathon, Marinette, Marquette, Menominee, Milwaukee, Monroe, Oconto, Outagamie, Ozaukee, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Portage, Price, Racine, Richland, Rock, Rusk, Sauk, Sawyer, Shawano, Sheboygan, St. Croix, Taylor, Trempealeau, Vernon, Vilas, Walworth, Washburn, Washington, Waukesha, Waupaca, Waushara, Winnebago, Wood) Click here for distribution map
In US: (AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV)
In Canada: (LB, MB, NB, NT, ON, PE, QC)
References:
Synonym(s):
Basionym: na
Homotypic Synonym(s):
Heterotypic Synonym(s):
Autonym: Ranunculus hispidus var. hispidus (The other infraspecific is Ranunculus hispidus var. caricetorum (Greene) T. Duncan which is recorded from the north eastern states and provinces of the US and Canada.)