Ranunculus flammula

Creeping buttercup

Family: Ranunculaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Creeping buttercup is a California native perennial found in wetland and riparian habitats, typically growing in moist areas from low to mid-elevation ranges. Flowering from May to September, this plant produces bright yellow flowers with 5 to 6 delicate petals approximately 1 to 4 millimeters wide. Growing with slender stems 10 to 45 centimeters tall that readily root at the nodes, it spreads in low, creeping formations across damp ground. Its leaves have narrow, pointed bases with entire or minutely serrated margins, arranged alternately along the stem and tapering to acute tips. The small fruits are lenticular, with smooth thick walls and a tiny straight or curved beak 0.1 to 0.6 millimeters long.

California counties: Mendocino, Humboldt, Tehama, San Bernardino, Nevada, Tuolumne, Modoc, Butte, El Dorado, Lassen, Amador, Mariposa, Mono, Del Norte, Lake, Plumas, Siskiyou, Placer, Fresno, Marin, Shasta, Tulare, Sierra

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.