The Buttercup Family
What are they?
Buttercups are readily recognized by most people as bright yellow flowers that stud open grassland in the spring and early summer. But this family includes quite a range of other species with a multitude of looks - though most have a common trait of being poisonous to a greater or lesser degree.
Identification
The buttercups themselves need a little care as there are a number of superficially similar species. However, a combination of flower detail and leaf appearance will identify them all fairly easily. The other genera in this family have fewer species and should be easy to identify using the images below.
One technical term that it is useful to know when identifying this group is tepal. Some members of this family do not have the customary arrangement of a row of outer sepals and a row of inner petals, but instead have just a single row of what are sometimes called petaloid sepals or, more easily, tepals. These are usually colored to attract pollinators in the same way as petals are.
European Columbine Aquilegia vulgaris
Introduced from Europe. Grown as a garden plant and may occasionally be found as an escape from cultivation on roadsides and in waste places. Flowers late April to July. A coarser plant than the native columbine with broader flowers and leaves that are usually more bluish-green.
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Red Columbine Aquilegia canadensis
Native to New Jersey but perhaps only a garden escape in the outer coastal plain. Occasionally found in open woodland or other shady places. Flowers late April to May.
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Tall Meadow-rue Thalictrum pubescens
Nowhere common but may be found throughout the county in small numbers in more or less permanently wet, muddy bogs and swamps. Flowers June to August.
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Common Larkspur Consolida ajacis
Introduced from Europe and still occasionally appears as a constituent of 'wild flower' mixes on roadsides, fields and waste places. Flowers late May to July. Closely related to the delphiniums and similar to them in general appearance. Flowers may be a variety of shades of bluish purple, pink or white.
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Love-in-a-mist Nigella damascena
Introduced from Europe and occasionally appears as a constituent of 'wild flower' mixes. Flowers late May to August.
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American Wood Anemone Anemone quinquefolia
A woodland plant of loamy soils, often found in damp ground. Plants gradually spread to form extensive, low mats. Flowers April to May.
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Autumn Virgin's Bower Clematis terniflora
An introduced and heavily invasive species, native to Asia. Now abundant and swamping large areas of native vegetation, especially around Cape May Point. Flowers late July to September.
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and long stamens |
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slightly lobed |
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| long silky hairs |
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old stems |
Eastern Virgin's Bower Clematis virginiana
The native Clematis of the region has been recorded in Cape May in at least two localities in the past, but there appears to have been no confirmed reports for many years. Flowers late July to September. Compared with the invasive species detailed above, Eastern Virgin's Bower has thinner leaves and the leaves are all distinctly lobed throughout the plant.
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showing lobed margins |
Marsh-marigold Caltha palustris
Like a giant buttercup with its much larger, bright yellow flowers. Found in swamps, usually in shady ground and woodland. Flowers April to May.
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deep-cleft base |
distinct veins |
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Lesser Celandine Ficaria verna
(Fig Buttercup) Introduced from Europe. A low, mat-forming species of usually damp ground in semi-shaded, grassy places. Occasionally grown in gardens. Flowers April to May. Flowers rather variable, normally with eight petals but nine petals is not unusual and flowers with up to 16 petals can be found. Leaves broadly triangular, usually green but sometimes with either pale or dark markings - or both. Spreads by small root bulblets and can become a weed in shady back yards.
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Hooked Buttercup Ranunculus recurvatus
(Blisterwort) An uncommon species of wet ground along water courses in shady places. Flowers April to June. The sepals on the flowers are reflexed and a little longer than the small petals.
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Meadow Buttercup Ranunculus acris
(Tall Buttercup) Introduced from Europe. Uncommon in open fields, roadsides and other grassy places. Flowers May to July. The sepals are not reflexed; most easily told from other buttercups by its deeply dissected lower leaves.
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Hispid Buttercup Ranunculus hispidus
An uncommon species of rich, dry woods, rather isolated in Cape May and perhaps introduced. Flowers April to May. The sepals are not reflexed; plants may form large colonies in grassy areas, by way of creeping runners. Leaves usually have pale blotches.
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Creeping Buttercup Ranunculus repens
Introduced from Europe and typically found in low, moist hollows in old fields, meadows and roadsides, and occasionally gardens. Flowers May to June. The sepals are not reflexed; plants may form large colonies in grassy areas, by way of creeping runners. Leaves usually have pale blotches.
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Bulbous Buttercup Ranunculus bulbosus
(St. Anthony's Turnip) Introduced from Europe and now abundant throughout Cape May County in grassy meadows, especially horse paddocks. Flowers late April to June. The sepals on the flowers are reflexed; plants often form large colonies in grassy areas, though do not have creeping runners.
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Hairy Buttercup Ranunculus sardous
Few records for Cape May County but currently known from Erma. Introduced from Europe and very similar to Bulbous Buttercup, but best told by its very hairy stems and sepals. Flowers May to July.
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reflexed sepals |
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Small-flowered Buttercup Ranunculus parviflorus
There are no published records of this European species for Cape May County, but it is quite widespread in areas of short grass in parks, lawns and roadsides. Flowers March to June. This is a low species of short, dry grasslands with tiny flowers that are hard to spot unless down on hands and knees! Starts early in the season with a flat basal rosette of broad leaves, but later sends out trailing runners with narrower leaves.
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| leaves with three or five lobes |
note reflexed sepals |
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Kidney-leaved Buttercup Ranunculus abortivus
(Littleleaf Buttercup) There are no published records of this species for Cape May County, but it was photographed in woodland near Goshen in 2010. A woodland plant with a rather spindly growth style, small flowers and kidney-shaped basal leaves. Flowers April to July.
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or kidney-shaped |
Celery-leaved Buttercup Ranunculus sceleratus
(Cursed Buttercup) A distinctive plant that bears a close resemblance to Celery before sending up its flowering stems. A plant of muddy wetland edges, but also found as a weed of cultivation where the soil is seasonally wet. Flowers April to June.
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resemble Celery leaves |