Family |
Ranunculaceae
Ranunculus constantinopolitanus
(DC.) d'Urv.
Ranunculus constantinopolitanus (DC.) d’Urv.
(Mém. Soc. Linn. Paris 1: 317; 1822 – basionym: Ranunculus bulbosus var. constantinopolitanus DC., Syst. Nat. 1: 246; 1817 – Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 1, Pl. LXXVII nº 3; 1966)
• Life-form & habit: Perennial herb with a thickened, somewhat bulbous rootstock and several ascending to erect stems, 15–40 cm tall. Stems striate, finely pubescent, often branched above.
• Leaves: Basal leaves long-petioled, broadly reniform to orbicular in outline, deeply 3–5-lobed with toothed or lobulate margins; upper cauline leaves sessile, smaller, divided into narrow linear segments. Surfaces softly hairy on both sides.
• Inflorescence & flowers: Flowers solitary or few, on long peduncles, 15–25 mm in diameter. Sepals 5, reflexed at anthesis, greenish, hairy outside. Petals 5, bright yellow, obovate, 10–12 mm long, glossy, slightly longer than the sepals. Stamens numerous; receptacle globose, bearing many carpels.
• Fruit: Achenes in a globose head, each 2–3 mm long, smooth or slightly rugose, glabrous, with a short, straight or slightly curved persistent style; not spiny, unlike R. arvensis.
• Phenology: Flowers from March to May; fruits mature from May to July.
• Habitat & elevation: Open grassy slopes, rocky pastures, forest edges, and light scrub, usually on calcareous soils, from 400 to 1 800 m. Prefers moderately moist conditions but tolerates seasonal drying.
• Lebanese distribution: Recorded by Mouterde (1966) from Mount Lebanon — notably Barouk, Bcharreh, Sannine, Ehden, and Ain Dara — and extending into the Anti-Lebanon near Rashaya. Frequent in montane meadows and open woodlands.
• Native to: Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Krym, Lebanon-Syria, North Caucasus, NW. Balkan Pen., Palestine, Romania, Transcaucasus, Türkiye, Türkiye-in-Europe (POWO).
• Introduced into: Central European Russia (POWO).
• ⚠️ Taxonomic note: Ranunculus constantinopolitanus is a distinct eastern Mediterranean species closely related to R. bulbosus but separable by its smaller flowers, non-reflexed petals, and less conspicuous bulbous base. Mouterde (1966) described Lebanese specimens as forming dense patches in submontane and montane meadows, co-occurring with R. millefoliatus and Anemone coronaria. The species is well adapted to Mediterranean mountain climates, flowering early in spring and persisting in moist soils along mountain slopes.