Creeping Buttercup

Ranunculus repens

Found in low meadows, disturbed areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 82%

Height: About 2 feet
Light: Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Moist to wet

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Ranunculus repens — flower photograph — (c) Gavin Slater, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original photograph

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At a glance

Bloom: May to September
Fruiting season: Summer to fall

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Not yet recorded · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

Recorded in 8 Alabama counties.

Habitats

Meadows; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there. All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Ranunculus

Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

—Specialist beesPollen specialists

13BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Ranunculus

Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
Centrocercus urophasianusGreater Sage-Grouse
Cygnus buccinatorTrumpeter Swan
Dendrocygna bicolorFulvous Whistling-Duck
Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
Lagopus mutaRock Ptarmigan

Show all 13

Mareca americanaAmerican Wigeon
Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting

Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Ranunculaceae
Flower color: Yellow
Growth rate: Rapid
Growth habit: Spreads by runners
Foliage color: Green
Fruit begins: Summer
Fruit ends: Fall

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “May to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “Yellow” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Growth habit · “Spreads by runners” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Height · “About 2 feet” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
primary_flower_color · “yellow” · USDA PLANTS
Soil · “Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Conservation status

Alabama rank	Not available
Global rank	GNR
AL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source