Ranunculus occidentalis

Western buttercup

Family: Ranunculaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Western buttercup is a California native perennial found in various bioregions in grasslands, meadows, and open woodlands at elevations from low to moderate ranges. Flowering from March to June, this plant produces bright yellow flowers with distinctive cup-shaped petals that create a glossy, golden appearance. Growing with multiple delicate stems 10 to 60 centimeters tall, it forms a loose, spreading habit with multiple branches. Its distinctive leaves are widely ovate to semicircular, typically basal and proximal, ranging 1.5 to 5.3 centimeters long with deeply divided or compound upper stem leaves. The fruit develops as a compact, disk-like structure with a thick, smooth wall characteristic of buttercup species.

California counties: Humboldt, Mendocino, Placer, Amador, Lake, Lassen, Tulare, Plumas, Fresno, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Tehama, Shasta, Siskiyou, Modoc, Kern, Del Norte, Trinity, Tuolumne, Riverside, Sierra, Calaveras, Sonoma, Nevada, Napa, Yuba, Butte, Solano, Sutter, Glenn, Mariposa, Alpine, Inyo, Madera, Mono, Marin, Colusa, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, Alameda, Yolo, Stanislaus

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