Seaside crowfoot  (Ranunculus cymbalaria)

The seaside crowfoot has yet to be classified by the IUCN.

The seaside crowfoot (Ranunculus cymbalaria) is a low-growing, perennial member of the buttercup family, with creeping stems and small, yellow flowers (2) (3) (4) (5). The hairless stems, known as stolons, grow horizontally along the ground and develop roots at various points along their length (3) (6) (7). In contrast, the seaside crowfoot’s flowering stems are erect (6) (7).

The scientific name of the seaside crowfoot, cymbalaria, comes from the Greek and Latin for ‘cymbal’, and refers to the rounded shape of the leaves (2) (5). The leaves of this species mainly grow at the base of the stems and are generally heart- or kidney-shaped, with a rounded tip (2) (3) (6) (7). The margins of the leaf may have rounded teeth (3) (5) (6) (7). The seaside crowfoot’s leaves grow at alternating points along the stem (7) (8) and are quite variable in size, reaching up to about 3.8 centimetres in length and 3.2 centimetres in width (6) (7).

The flowers of the seaside crowfoot grow individually rather than in clusters (7), and each flower has five small, yellow petals (2) (3) (4) (6) (7). The pistils form a dense, cone-like centre to the flower (3), which eventually develops into a short, cylindrical cluster of fruits. The fruit of this species is dry and single-seeded (2) (3) (5) (6) (7), and is green when mature (7).

The seaside crowfoot occurs in North America, from Alaska, westward to Labrador in Canada, and south across much of the western, central and north-eastern United States (3) (4) (6) (7). It is also found in Greenland (4) (7), and has been reported to occur in parts of South America, Europe and Asia (9), although little information is available on the exact extent of its distribution.

The seaside crowfoot prefers damp, muddy habitats such as bogs, marshes, ditches, wet meadows, mud flats, sea shores and stream banks. It often uses salty or brackish areas, and may spread into ditches where road salt has accumulated (2) (3) (5) (6) (7).

Relatively little information is available on the biology of the seaside crowfoot, other than that it flowers in late spring and summer (3) (4) (6), usually between June and July (2) (5). In most members of the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae), the flowers are bisexual, possessing both male and female reproductive organs, and are usually pollinated by insects (8).

Some Native American groups have used the seaside crowfoot for its medicinal properties (6) (7).

The seaside crowfoot is listed as ‘Endangered’ or ‘Threatened’ in some U.S. states (2) (4) (5). However, very little information is available on the threats faced by this plant, and its conservation status has yet to be assessed by the IUCN (10).

There are no known specific conservation measures currently in place for the seaside crowfoot.

Find out more about the seaside crowfoot:

• Flora of North America - Ranunculus cymbalaria (July, 2011)
  http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=220011388