ranunculus occidentalis

Flowers of the Sequalitchew Prairie

ranunculus occidentalis

A species of buttercup found in the western United States and Canada. Its distribution extends from Alaska through British Columbia and Alberta to central California. The flower can be seen in open meadows, forests, and other generally flat areas up to an elevation of 2,200 metres (7,200 ft).

Aleut Indians may have used juice from the plant as a poison, its toxicity arising from the substance protoanemonin. Shasta Indians coincided blooming R. occidentalis with salmon runs in the summer. The seeds were used to make pinole, a staple food.

This plant is similar to, and sometimes difficult to distinguish from, the California buttercup (Ranunculus californicus).