Nearctica - Eastern Wildflowers - Ranunculaceae - Common Buttercup (Ranunculus acris)

Common Buttercup

(Ranunculaceae acris)

Color Photograph: Copyright Nearctica.com, Inc.

Line Drawing: Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Second Edition.

Common Buttercup (Ranunculus acris L.)

Alien: Native of Europe.

Identification: Flowers relatively large, yellow, waxy. Petals 5 to 7, overlapping. Stem erect, hairy, and branching. Leaves deeply divided but with basically three major divisions. Plant 2 to 3 feet in height.

Distribution: Throughout most of North America except for the south-central and southwestern United States.

Habitat: Common Buttercup is most commonly found in fields and meadows, but sometimes along roadsides and other disturbed areas.

Flowering period: May to September.

Similar Species: Common Buttercup is most likely to be confused with Bulbous Buttercup. The sepals of Bulbous Buttercup are reflexed, pointing downward and the plant arises from a bulb-shaped root. The leaves of Bulbous Buttercup are stubbier and the leaf sections not nearly as elongate as in Common Buttercup.