Aquilegia, Linnaeus, 1753

Erst, Andrey S., Shaulo, Dmitry N., Baasanmunkh, Shukherdorj, Choi, Hyeok Jae, Kaigalov, Igor V., Kulikovskiy, Maxim S., Maltseva, Svetlana Yu., Lian, Lian & Wang, Wei, 2022, First record of Aquilegia grubovii (Ranunculaceae) for Russia and key to all currently known species in the country, Phytotaxa 576 (2), pp. 213-219 : 217-218

Identification key to the genus Aquilegia in Russia

1. Stems glaucous, in the upper part glabrous or sparsely pubescent with simple hairs; seed surface striate .......................................2

- Stems green, in the upper part with glandular and sometimes simple hairs; seed surface smooth, striate or tuberculate .................5

2(1). Flowers small, 1.3–1.8 cm in diameter; spurs not inflated at base................................................................................. A. synakensis + Flowers large, 2–7 cm in diameter; spurs inflated at base..................................................................................................................3

3(2). Follicles 5, glabrous (plants from Siberia) .......................................................................................................................... A. sibirica

- Follicles 4–8, sparsely pubescent with simple hairs (plants from Far East Russia)...........................................................................4

4(3). Leaves thin, green adaxially, greyish abaxially; sepals acuminate at apex; anthers yellow............................................ A. amurensis

- Leaves thick, dark green with brighter nerves adaxially, greyish abaxially; sepals rounded at apex; anthers blackish .. A. flabellata

5. Seeds with tuberculate surface, dull ...................................................................................................................................................6

- Seeds with striate or smooth surface, glossy ....................................................................................................................................12

6. Flowers 5–10 ......................................................................................................................................................................................7

- Flowers 1–4 ........................................................................................................................................................................................8

7(6). Sepals shorter than petal laminae; laminae broadly rounded at apex, spurs bent outwards from the flower axis; vegetative parts of plant having a strong smell.............................................................................................................................................. A. aradanica

- Sepals equal to or longer than petal laminae; laminae blunted at apex, spurs parallel to flower axis; plant without strong smell ..... ............................................................................................................................................................................................ A. grubovii

8(6). Flowers> 4 cm in diameter, blue or 2-coloured (sepals blue, laminae white or yellowish); stamens shorter than laminae, anthers yellow; follicles (5)6–15, style 0.6–1 cm long ..................................................................................................................................9

- Flowers 1–4 cm in diameter, yellowish green, dark purple, or 2-coloured (sepals pale blue or lilac-blue, petals purple to violet); stamens longer than laminae; follicles 5, styles 0.7–1.5 cm long ...................................................................................................10

9. Flowers blue; sepals spreading; laminae ovate, spreading, tips bent inwards............................................................... А. glandulosa

- Flowers 2-coloured (sepals and spurs blue, petal laminae white or yellowish); sepals perpendicular to floral axis; laminae oblong, suberect or parallel to floral axis, tips bent outwards......................................................................................................... A. jucunda

10(5). Flowers 2-coloured (sepals and spurs blue, petal laminae white or yellowish), spurs straight or bent to one side, swollen at the base; petal laminae rounded, do not close at the edges, narrowed at apex.......................................................................... A. turczaninovii

- Flowers yellowish green, dark purple or 2-coloured (sepals pale blue or lilac-blue, petals purple to violet); spurs straight or bent outwards; petal laminae blunt, closed by the edges .........................................................................................................................11

11(10). Flowers yellowish green or dark purple; sepals shorter than or nearly equal to petal laminae, rounded at apex; laminae broadly spatulate .......................................................................................................................................................................... A. viridiflora

- Flowers 2-coloured (sepals pale blue or lilac-blue, petals purple to violet); sepals longer than petal laminae, acute to obtuse or acuminate at apex; laminae broadly truncate ................................................................................................................... A. kamelinii

12(5). Plant with long thick diageotropic rhizome branched into thinner vertically growing rhizomes; petal laminae strongly ventrally folded .............................................................................................................................................................................. A. parviflora

- Plant with short erect rhizome (taproot); petal laminae not folded .................................................................................................13

15(13). Anthers blackish ...............................................................................................................................................................................16

- Anthers yellow..................................................................................................................................................................................21

16. Flowers creamy (white) or 2-coloured (sepals and spurs dark purple or dark red, laminae yellow or yellowish white) ................17

- Flowers purple, violet, blue or 2-coloured (sepals and spurs blue, laminae white or purplish white) .............................................18

17(16). Flowers creamy; laminae 1.5–2 cm long; spurs curved .................................................................................................. A. ganboldii

- Flowers 2-coloured (sepals dark purple or dark red, laminae yellow or yellowish white); laminae 1–1.3 cm long; spurs hooked, rarely curved.................................................................................................................................................................... A. oxysepala

18(16). Flowers 2-coloured (sepals and spurs blue, laminae white, yellowish or whitish blue) (plants from Caucasian part of Russia)........ ........................................................................................................................................................................................... A. olympica

- Flowers blue, light violet, dark red or dark purple ...........................................................................................................................19

19(18) Flowers dark red or dark purple, laminae bent outwards; filaments red-garnet, red violet; stamens longer that laminae (Irkutsk Oblast, not native) ................................................................................................................................................................. A. atrata

- Flowers blue, light violet or violet, laminae parallel to floral axis; filaments white; stamens equal to or shorter than laminae.....20

20(19) Inflorescence 1–4-flowered; flowers 3–6 cm in diameter; laminae rounded at the apex; spurs thin, often coiled; stamens slightly longer than to about as long as laminae (plants from Far East Russia)........................................................................... A. barykinae

- Inflorescence usually> 4-flowered; flowers 2–3.5 cm in diameter; laminae blunted at the apex; spurs inflated, slightly curved; stamens not longer than laminae (not native)...................................................................................................................... A.vulgaris

21(15) Flowers concolored, blue or blue-violet, 5–6.5 cm long; spurs straight, inflated at base, 1–1.2 cm long (plants from Far East Russia) ............................................................................................................................................................................ A. ochotensis

- Flowers 2-colored, (sepals and spurs blue, petal laminae white or yellowish), 2.5–4 cm long; spurs divergent, crescent-curved inwards, not inflated at base, 1.5–3 cm long .................................................................................................................... A. borodinii

Note:—The taxonomic status of Aquilegia kubanica Vassiljeva (1992: 1765) should be verified by a set of methods, and additional herbarium materials should be studied.