''Ranunculus sceleratus'' known by the common names celery-leaved buttercup, celery-leaf buttercup, and cursed buttercup is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the buttercup family

Ranunculaceae Ranunculaceae (, buttercup or crowfoot family; Latin "little frog", from "frog") is a family (biology), family of over 2,000 known species of flowering plants in 43 genera, distributed worldwide. The largest genera are ''Ranunculus'' (600 spec ...

. It has a circumpolar distribution in the northern hemisphere, native to temperate and boreal

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and

Eurasia Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...

, where it grows in wet and moist habitats, including ponds and streambanks.

Description

''Ranunculus sceleratus'' is an annual herb growing up to half a meter tall. The leaves are more or less

glabrous Glabrousness () is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes, or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of a plant or animal, or be due to loss because of a physical condition, ...

(hairless) and have small blades each deeply lobed or divided into three leaflets. They are borne on long petioles. The flowers are 5-10mm across with five or fewer yellow petals a few millimeters long and reflexed

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s. The fruit is an

achene An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple fruit, simple dry fruits, dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and Dehi ...

borne in a cluster of several. While buttercups are toxic due to the presence of the substance

protoanemonin Protoanemonin (sometimes called anemonol or ranunculol) is a toxin whose glyosidic precursor ranunculin is found in many plants of the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae). When the plant is wounded or macerated, ranunculin is enzymatically broken ...

, this applies in particular for the cursed buttercup: it is the most toxic buttercup and contains 2.5% protoanemonin. When the leaves are wrinkled, damaged or crushed, they bring out unsightly sores and blisters on human skin. All parts of the plant are considered to be poisonous. Side effects after ingestion can manifest themselves as extremely irritating to the skin and mucous membranes. It may cause sensation of pain and burning perceptions, tongue inflammation, and intensification in salivation.

Distribution

''Ranunculus sceleratus'' has a circumpolar distribution in the northern hemisphere There are two varieties and one subspecies with distinctive distributions: ''R. sceleratus'' ssp. ''reptabundus'' occurs in northern

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

and north-west

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. ''R. scleratus'' var. ''multifidus'' occurs in north western

, and ''R. scleratus'' var. ''longissimus'' is found from Minnesota to Alabama according to their biodiversity and plant atlases respectively. It is also distributed in Australia and New Zealand.

References

External links

*
Jepson Manual TreatmentWashington Burke MuseumPhoto gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1339284 sceleratus Flora of Europe Flora of temperate Asia Flora of tropical Asia Flora of Northern America Flora of Australasia Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus