The Ranunculaceae of Iowa. 



By T. J. and M. F. L. Fitzpatrick. 



RANUNCULACEAE Juss. Gen. 231. 1789. 



THE CROWFOOT FAMILY. 



This rather diverse family comprises about 35 genera and 

 1050 species. The family is universally distributed but 

 reaches its greatest development in the temperate and cold 

 regions of the northern hemisphere, more frequent in 

 Europe than in Asia or America. Mr. Heller in his cata- 

 logue of North American plants, first edition, enumerates 

 32 genera and 314 species and varieties ; in the second 

 edition he enumerates 31 genera and 373 species and varie- 

 ties. Dr. Watson gives 22 genera and 76 species as occurring 

 within the limits covered by Gray's Manual. Britton and 

 Brown in their illustrated Flora recognize 28 genera and 94 

 species and 7 varieties. We credit Iowa with 37 species 

 and a probability of two or three more, distributed through 

 17 genera. 



HISTORICAL. 



Dr. C. C. Parry in his Catalogue of the Plants of Wis- 

 consin and Minnesota, made in connection with the geo- 

 logical survey of the Northwest during the season of 1848 

 and published in 1852 as an appendix to Owen's Geological 

 Survey of Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota, incidentally 

 enumerates the following species of Ranunculaceae as 

 occurring in Iowa: "Clematis vtoma L. Banks of the 

 Mississippi river near Davenport." We however consider 

 this a spurious Iowa species and that C. pitcheri T. & G. 

 was intended; C. simsii Sweet. "Anemone caroliniana 

 v-2 l 87 



