YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 

 (yellow) (blue) 



35 



COLUMBINE 



LARKSPUB 



Columbine (Aquilegia). The columbine is one of 

 the most abundant and most beautiful of the flowers 

 in the Park. It is found in all moderately moist 

 places, even to the summits of the mountains, and 

 blooms from early in July until well into August. 

 The leaves are trefoil, somewhat like those of clover, 

 but the sections have rounded lobes on their outer 

 ends. The flowers are very characteristic : Five spurs 

 project from the bases of the petals, each with a tiny 

 ball on the end. The upper part of the flower resembles 

 somewhat a double frill, the inner five parts being 

 rolled into little funnels. All the columbines in the 

 Park are yellow, sometimes marked with red. 



Larkspur (Delphinium). The larkspur grows 

 very abundantly in open, sunny places that are well- 

 drained but not too dry; it does not belong to the 

 sagebrush association. The thick, smooth, light-green 

 stem is fairly tall, growing three feet or sometimes 

 more, and ending in a spike of flowers. The leaves are 

 cleft into about five narrow segments, which extend 

 like the fingers of a hand ; each segment ends in three 

 or five pointed projections. The flowers are somewhat 

 irregular, the upper part extending backward into a 

 spur, which gives the plant its name. 



