a 
1900. No. 8 VASCULAR PLANTS COLLECTED IN ARCTIC NORTH AMERICA. 41 
Ranunculaceae. 
Caltha L. 
34. Caltha palustris L., var. asarifolia (D. C.) HvrH, Monogr. d. Gatt. 
Caltha, in Abh. u. Vortr. a. d. Gesammtgeb. d. Naturwiss., Bd. 4, I, 1891, 
p. 19; C. asarifolia DE CANDOLLE, Syst. nat., I, 1818, p. 309; C. V. PIPER, 
Contrib. U. S. National Herb., XI, 1906, p. 277; C. palustris, var. aleu- 
tensis Hutu, ibid., p. 24 et p. 27. (See pl. II, fig. 8). 
? Caltha arctica R. Br., Putten’s list. Richard's Isle. 
King Point. Flowering on June 26th and July 6th, 1906. 
Herschell Island. Flowering on July 17th, 1906. 
The specimens from King Point and Herschell Island are all alike and 
agree in most points with the description of C. asarifolia D.C. (1. c.), viz.: 
»caule suberecto, 1-floro, foliis cordato-reniformibus crenatis sinu obtusis, 
sepalis 6-7 ovalibus. In insula Unalaschka, una ex ins. Aleutanis. Folia 
radicalia petiolata, petiolo limbo duplo longiore basi in vaginam membra- 
naceam amplam dilatato, C. palustri similia sed paulo minora.< Almost the 
same words are given in Hurn’s monograph (l.c.). C. V. PIPER who 
records it from the State of Washington (I. c.), gives in the key to the 
genus the following statement: »stems decumbent<, a statement, which 
differs from DE CANDOLLE’s; and adds: »this seems fairly distinct from 
the eastern C. palustris L.e I agree with the latter author that the form 
in question differs from the true C. palustris, but I prefer — at least at 
present — to retain it as a variety. 
Huræs variety var. aleutensis (|. c.) has been based upon fruiting 
specimens from the same place as C. asarifolia; it is characterized by the 
creeping stems with roots from the nodes and by the not-recurvate fruits. 
No doubt it is identical with C. asarifolia, as the author himself suggests 
with some hesitation. His new name must therefore be dropped. 
Our specimens unite the different statements as to the direction 
of the stems, some being ascending, others decumbent and others again 
creeping and rooting. DE CANDOLLE’s words »caule suberectos must be 
seen in relation to C. palustris of which he gives the stem as »erecto«, 
and he means only that the stem is less erect in C. asarifolia than in 
C. palustris. 
Our variety which seems to be a geographical race of C. palustris 
occurring in the north-western part of N. America, i.e. a Beringian race, 
is characterized by the following: stem slender, more or less decumbent, 
often rooting, leaves cordate-reniform crenate, flowers mostly solitary on 
