CLASS Xiri. ORDER VI. 243 



Ranunculus multifidus. Pursh. Yellow Water Ra- 

 nunculus. 



Floating, leaves capillary, many-cleft, with axillary 

 leafets ; peduncles opposite to bractes ; petals from 

 live to eight, obovate-wedge shaped. 

 Si/n. Ranunculus fluviatilis. Flor. Bost. \st, edit. 



Stem floating, three or four feet long, round, smooth, tubular, 

 a little branched at top, and sending out very long thread shaped 

 roots from the lower joints. Leaves immersed, alternate, with 

 short concave petioles, cleft into innumerable capillary, flattish 

 segments, at first ternately, and afterward by forks. In the axil 

 of each leaf is commonly a similar leafet on a long petiole, or 

 sometimes a small branch. Stipules thin, oblong, obtuse. Brac- 

 tes oblong, sometimes three cleft, and now and then subdivided 

 into linear segments like the leaves, but broader and shorter. 

 Peduncles opposite to bractes, large, slightly furrowed. Calyx 

 of five yellowish, obtuse, concave, caducous leafets. Petals five, 

 and often more, obovate-wedge shaped, yellow, shining, twice 

 as long as the calyx and as large as R. bulbosus. Nectary ovate, 

 concave, with erect edges. Seeds smooth, with conical, erect, 

 recurved points. — Found in stagnant waters. — May, June. — Pe- 

 rennial. 



This species was first described in the former edition of this 

 work under the name of R. fluviatilis, of which it was then con- 

 sidered a variety. Mr. Pursh has since described in his supple- 

 ment, under the name of R. multifidus, a plant found in Upper 

 Louisiana, agreeing in most respects with this, and which, I am 

 informed, on comparison of specimens, turns out the same. The 

 R. multifidus of Pvees' Cyclopedia is a wholly different, Egyptian 

 plant. De Candolle, who adopts Pursh's name for tlie American 

 plant, applies the appellation, R. Forskoehlii, to the Egyptian 

 species. Hooker considers our plant the same as his B. Purshii, 

 which to me appears dissimilar in size, petiolation and habit, by 

 his figure. » 



