349 



Ranunculus afflnis R. Rr. 



and 



R. afflnis* Wilanderi Nath. 



(Syn. R. arcticus Richard., R. amoenus Led. p. p., see Sim- 

 mons, 1906). 



Lit. Hooker. 1833, p. 12, fig., lab. VL Nathorst, 1883, p. 

 23. Børgesen, 1895, pp.225, 236—37. Hartz. (II), 1895, p. 288. 

 Nestler, 1895. Resvoll, 1900. Andersson Sc Hesselman, 1901, 

 pp. 49 — 54, figs. 25-26. Dcsén, 1901, p. 31. Simmons, 1906, 

 pp. 101 — 08; 1909. p. 74. 



Alcohol material from Spitzbergen (Middelhook in Belsund, 

 30.6. 1882; Cape Tbordsen, 6.8. 1882; Gåselandet, 11.7. 1892). 



E. affinis is a perennial herb with a vertical rhizome ; 

 the latter may reach a length of as much as 5 cm., and adven- 

 titious roots arise from the whole of its surface. The rosette- 

 leaves are long-stalked, and the laminae somewhat reniform, always 

 more or less deeply palmately-cleft, often into five principal lobes. 

 I did not find scale-leaves. In most of the plants a principal 

 bud occurred in the uppermost leaf-axil at the base of the 

 stem, but the other leaves of the rosette may also subtend 

 buds, and the rhizome is often found to be branched. The 

 new shoot begins with at least two transversely-placed, long- 

 stalked foliage-leaves; the others succeed in a ^/5 spiral. 

 The lateral shoots develop rosettes during the same year as 

 that in which the parent-axis flowers, and when the fruit 

 ripens some of the rosette-leaves of the parent-axis are still 

 alive. 1 have noticed no instance of the principal bud flowering 

 the same year as the parent-axis. There are 3 — 4 stem-leaves; 

 the lowermost is often stalked and resembles the basal leaves, 

 the others are sessile and pedately cleft into 5 — 9 oblong-linear 

 lobes. The stem-leaves often subtend floral axes. In var. 

 Wilanderi, which is altogether of lower growth than the prin- 

 cipal' form, the upper interfoliar parts of the stem in the 2 — 

 3 flowering specimens are very short so that all the floral axes 

 appear to proceed from about the same point (Nath.). The 

 XXXVI. 23 



