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R A N U N C U L U S Lingua.
Great Spear-wort.
P O L Y A N D R I A Polygynia.
G en. Ch a r . Cal. five-leaved. Petals five, with a honey-
bearing pore on the infide of the claw of each. Seeds
naked.
Spec. Ch a r. Leaves lanceolate. Stem ered.
Sy n . Ranunculus Lingua. Linn. Sp. PI. 773. HudJ.
FI.An. 240. With. Bot. Arr. 572. Relb. Cant. 211.
R . flammeus major. Raii Syn. 250.
T h IS has always been reckoned a very rare fpecies of
Ranunculus, yet it appears to belong to various parts of England.
Mr. Robfon fent this fpecimen from near Darlington.
Dr. Smith has obferved it in feveral parts of Norfolk. It
generally grows in muddy ditches, flowering in July, and the
root is perennial.
The fpecies is very nearly allied to R. Flammula, and like
that varies with entire or ferrated leaves; but all its parts are
vaftly larger, its Item ere£t, its leaves more fharply pointed,
and more feflile. The hairinefs, which is but flight, is, as
Linnaeus obferves, fhort and clofe prefled to the leaves and
Item : this laft mark indeed does not diftinguilh it from R.
Flammula. The flowers are of a bright golden colour, very
confpicuous.
Linnaeus has called this fpecies Lingua, becaufe Dalechampius
guefled it to be the Lingua of Pliny ; but fuch conjectures are
generally too ill founded to be depended on, and ignorance is
preferable to vague and fitperficial information.
The herb is acrid like moll of its tribe.