Jepson Herbarium
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University of California, Berkeley
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Vascular Plants of California
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Myosurus apetalus


Higher Taxonomy
Family: RanunculaceaeView DescriptionDichotomous Key
Common Name: BUTTERCUP FAMILY
Habit: Annual, perennial herb, woody vine [shrub], occasionally aquatic. Leaf: generally basal and cauline, alternate or opposite, simple or compound; petioles at base generally flat, occasionally sheathing or stipule-like. Inflorescence: cyme, raceme, panicle, or flowers 1. Flower: generally bisexual, generally radial; sepals 3--6(20), free, early-deciduous or withering in fruit, generally green; petals 0--many, generally free; stamens generally 5--many, staminodes generally 0; pistils 1--many, ovary superior, chamber 1, style 0--1, generally +- persistent as beak, ovules 1--many. Fruit: achene, follicle, berry, +- utricle in Trautvetteria, in aggregate or not, 1--many-seeded.
Genera In Family: +- 60 genera, 1700 species: worldwide, especially northern temperate, tropical mountains; many ornamental (Adonis, Aquilegia, Clematis, Consolida, Delphinium, Helleborus, Nigella). Toxicity: some highly TOXIC (Aconitum, Actaea, Delphinium, Ranunculus). Note: Taxa of Isopyrum in TJM (1993) moved to Enemion; Kumlienia moved to Ranunculus.
eFlora Treatment Author: Margriet Wetherwax & Dieter H. Wilken, family description, key to genera
Scientific Editor: Douglas H. Goldman, Bruce G. Baldwin.
Genus: MyosurusView DescriptionDichotomous Key


Common Name: MOUSETAIL
Habit: Annual, short-lived, generally tufted. Leaf: basal, simple, linear. Inflorescence: scapose, 1-flowered. Flower: sepals (3)5(8), 1.5--4 mm, alike, free, green or scarious-margined, spurred; petals 0--5, free, linear to narrowly spoon-shaped, long-clawed, white; stamens 5--25; pistils 10--400, 1--2.5 mm, ovules 1, styles thread-like. Fruit: achene, angled, wall not veined, styles persistent, +- enlarged in fruit; receptacle elongate, generally growing and producing ovules after flower.
Etymology: (Greek: mus, mouse, and oura, tail)
eFlora Treatment Author: Alan T. Whittemore
Reference: Whittemore 1997 FNANM 3:135--138
Myosurus apetalus Gay
NATIVE
Habit: Plant 1.5--12.5 cm. Inflorescence: scape 0.9--10.5 cm. Fruit: outer face 1--2.2 mm, 0.4--1 mm wide, not bordered; beak 0.6--1.4 mm, diverging from fruit surface; aggregate 1.5--2 mm wide, exserted from leaves.

Jepson eFlora Author: Alan T. Whittemore
Reference: Whittemore 1997 FNANM 3:135--138
Index of California Plant Names (ICPN; linked via the Jepson Online Interchange)

Previous taxon: Myosurus
Next taxon: Myosurus apetalus var. borealis


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Citation for this treatment: Alan T. Whittemore 2012, Myosurus apetalus, in Jepson Flora Project (eds.) Jepson eFlora, https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=77533, accessed on December 01, 2024.

Citation for the whole project: Jepson Flora Project (eds.) 2024, Jepson eFlora, https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/, accessed on December 01, 2024.

Myosurus apetalus
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©2009 Thomas Stoughton
Myosurus apetalus
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©2003 Steve Matson
Myosurus apetalus
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©2003 Steve Matson
Myosurus apetalus
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©2003 Steve Matson
Myosurus apetalus
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©2008 Steve Matson

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Geographic subdivisions for Myosurus apetalus:
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map of distribution 1

(Note: any qualifiers in the taxon distribution description, such as 'northern', 'southern', 'adjacent' etc., are not reflected in the map above, and in some cases indication of a taxon in a subdivision is based on a single collection or author-verified occurrence).






 

Data provided by the participants of the  Consortium of California Herbaria.

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All markers link to CCH specimen records. The original determination is shown in the popup window.
Blue markers indicate specimens that map to one of the expected Jepson geographic subdivisions (see left map). Purple markers indicate specimens collected from a garden, greenhouse, or other non-wild location.
Yellow markers indicate records that may provide evidence for eFlora range revision or may have georeferencing or identification issues.
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CCH collections by month Flowering-Fruiting Monthly Counts

Duplicates counted once; synonyms included.
Species do not include records of infraspecific taxa, if there are more than 1 infraspecific taxon in CA.
Blue line denotes eFlora flowering time (fruiting time in some monocot genera).