Ranunculus sceleratus

Cursed buttercup

Family: Ranunculaceae · Type: annual · Native

Cursed buttercup is a native annual herb found in wet habitats, often emerging from muddy areas. Flowering from spring to summer, this plant produces small yellow flowers approximately 2 to 5 millimeters wide with reflexed sepals. Growing erect and glabrous, it reaches heights of 15 to 50 centimeters with an upright, unbranched form. Its distinctive basal leaves are broadly kidney-shaped, typically 1 to 5 centimeters long, with three-lobed or three-parted segments that have deeply crenate margins and rounded tips. The fruit is tiny, lenticular, with thick corky margins and a minimal deltate beak.

California counties: Contra Costa, San Diego, Riverside, Lassen, San Bernardino, Modoc, El Dorado, Shasta, San Joaquin, Merced, Tehama, Butte, Inyo, Sacramento, Stanislaus, Nevada, Santa Cruz, Monterey

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