Buttercup is known by the name of ‘coyote’s eyes’ in the remote Pacific Northwest of the United States. The name is after the legend where a coyote lost his eyes to an eagle and later formed new eyes with the buttercup flowers. According to an old belief which states that if someone holds a buttercup under his face and a yellowish glow is reflected on their face, it proves that the person has a fascination for butter.

Buttercup belongs to the genus of ‘Ranunculus’. These perennial herbs bear dazzling yellow or white flowers with yellow at the centre though sometimes a rare variety of orange and red flowers are also seen. Buttercups flower in May and June but most of the time the flowering extends all through the summer.

Buttercups are highly ornamental garden flowers. The larvae of some Lepidoptera species including ‘Hebrew Character’ and ‘Small Angle Shades’ thrive on the buttercup plant. The high toxin contents make the buttercups highly poisonous and prove fatal if consumed by any animal. But once the plant dries, it is safer to use it as hay.