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Common Name: Hairy Buttercup
Scientific Name: Ranunculus hispidus
Family: Ranunculaceae
Blue Ridge Parkway
North Carolina
June 1, 2002
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The specific name, hispidus, can be translated from the Latin to mean bristly. This is an excellent description of the tall stems of this plant. Each of the alternate leaves is deeply divided into three parts. These may be further lobed. The yellow petals (usually five) encircle a flower head packed with numerous pistils and stamens. The petals and the five green, spreading sepals make this the showiest buttercup included in this book. Sometimes this and other buttercups are mistaken for cinquefoils or even wild strawberries, but buttercups have more pistils and stamens than the others. Scientists theorize that similar-looking species develop to take advantage of similar pollinators. March - June [White, Peter, Wildflowers of the Smokies. Great Smoky Mountains Natural History Association, Gatlinburg, 1996]
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Alphabetical Listings -- A B C D, E F G H I, J, K L M N, O P Q, R S T U, V W X, Y, Z
Family Listings -- A B C D, E F G H I, J, K L M N, O P Q, R S T U, V W X, Y, Z
Genus Listings -- A B C D, E F G H I, J, K L M N, O P Q, R S T U, V W X, Y, Z