Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Ranunculales
Family: Ranunculaceae
Genus: Ranunculus
Species: R. hirtus
Scientific name: Ranunculus hirtus
Synonyms: Ranunculus plebius.
Ranunculus hirtus is a New Zealand plant that Joseph Banks and his party first saw at Tegadu Bay, New Zealand (20 October - 22 October 1769).
It is a slender branching pilose (covered with fine soft hairs) perennial herb growing up to 60 cm. It has small yellow buttercup type flowers in November to January. The flowers from this plant are hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and they are pollinated by insects.
Its fruiting heads are small, partly ball-shaped, achenes glab and hooked.
It grows in lowland to sub-alpine areas and in various habitats from forests to rocky places in the North, South, Stewart and Chatham Islands.
Photographed at Te Kainga Marire Gardens at Spencer Place New Plymouth
The seed head with the hooked seeds visible
Ranunculus hirtus leaf
Thanks to Wikipedia for text and information: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
