Alpine pasqueflower

About

The Alpine pasqueflower is one of the first flowers of the high mountains. Its white cup-shaped flowers appear on subalpine and alpine meadows as soon as the snow melts, often breaking through its edge. It blooms in April to May, and on the highest peaks until mid-July. After flowering, fluffy silvery 'tufts' of seeds form, which remain on the plant for a long time.

It is a perennial 7–25 cm tall with a powerful rhizome. The stem, leaves, and outer side of the petals are densely hairy. The flowers are solitary, upright, white, sometimes with a slight bluish tint on the outside, with yellow stamens in the center. The basal leaves are three-parted and appear at the end of flowering.

In the Ukrainian Carpathians, the Alpine pasqueflower grows at an altitude of approximately 1650–1960 m: on meadows, rocky outcrops, and scree, mainly on calcareous soils. Its most famous locations are Chornohora, as well as Świdowiec, Marmarosy, Chivchyny, and Gorgany. The blooming slopes of Chornohora at the end of May are one of the best rewards for early tourists.

Botanists refer to this Carpathian Alpine pasqueflower by several names: Pulsatilla alba, P. scherfelii, P. alpina subsp. alba. In the current list of the Red Book of Ukraine, it is recorded as Pulsatilla scherfelii with the status 'rare'. Therefore, collecting flowers and digging up plants is prohibited. Like other pasqueflowers, the plant is poisonous.

Where in the Carpathians

The map shows where naturalists recorded the species (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY records), not every place it lives. The Ukrainian Carpathians are less studied, so a blank area does not mean the species is absent. For rare and vulnerable species the map is deliberately coarse (hexagons of ~250 km² or more) so that it never points to dens, nests or growing sites.

Countries

Slovakia · Ukraine · Romania · Poland

Mountain ranges

Western Tatras, High Tatras, Low Tatras, Belianske Tatras, Chornohora, Slovak Paradise, Babia Góra, Făgăraș Mountains, Retezat Mountains, Maramureș Mountains

Altitude belts

Subalpine belt (1600–1900 m) · Alpine belt (above 1900 m)

When to see it

From naturalists’ observations in the Carpathians (iNaturalist, research grade): the darker the cell, the more often the species is seen that month.

Safety

Like all pasqueflowers, the plant is poisonous: fresh sap irritates the skin and mucous membranes.

Protection and rules

Listed in the Red Book of Ukraine as Pulsatilla scherfelii, status 'rare'. Enjoy, collecting is prohibited.

Admire, don’t pick: plants listed in the Red Data Book of Ukraine — and any plants in nature reserves and strictly protected zones of national parks — must not be collected.

Red Data Book of Ukraine

FAQ