Ascending or prostrate perennial herbs. Rootstock conical, undivided. Stem 20-45 cm long, sparsely pilose. Leaves generally 3-4 pinnate, petioles 4-6 cm long, with ereto-patent hairs. Leaflets 1.5-3.5 cm long, obovate, deeply divided nearly to the midrib, segments in 5-10 pairs, 5-7 mm long, oblong-ovate, coriaceous. Flowers 5-12, terminal, 8-10 mm, across, Calyces subequal or inner a little longer, acute, pilose, outer oblong, inner ovate. Petals obovate 5-7 mm long, yellow. Stamens about 20. Carpels numerous, styles subterminal, short 0.8-0.9 mm, thickened at the base. Achenes smooth.

Fl. Per.: May-August

Type: Described from a cultivated plant (PR).

A-7 Chitral District, Yarkhun 10000 ft, S. A. Bowes Lyon 922 (BM), Arkari Gol, N. of Tirich Mir 8500 ft. at the edge of irrigation channel, J.D.A. Stainton 2603 (BM), Mastuj, Saroghil track, between shrubs, flowers yellow, J.D.A. Stainton 2953 (BM), 2 km from Mastooj pump on way to Shandur, near stream bank, 2740 m, Haidar Ali 2199 (KUH), A-8 Gilgit, Hispar Valley 9-10000 ft, R. Scott Russell 1166 (BM), Nagar, Sheltered earth bank, irrigated and cultivated areas, flowers yellow, O. Polunin 6074 (BM, B), Hispar village area, banks between fields, irrigated area, O. Polunin 6350 (BM), B-8 Kashmir, vicinity of Baltal, on Sind River, 59 road miles north east of Srinagar, 9500 ft, F.G. Dickason 705 (BM), Deshkit Nubra, on grassy fields, F. Ludlow 526 (BM), Baltistan, Dogharin Shyob River, irrigated channel in field, F. Ludlow 344 (BM).

Distribution: USSR (Central Asia and Siberia), Mongolia, China, Pakistan, Kashmir. It does not occur in Caucasus which Tausch erroneously listed as the type locality (Sojak 1988).

Fairly common in N. Pakistan and Kashmir in cultivated fields and waste places between 2,400-3,000 m.

Potentilla ornithopoda Tausch. is a distinct species characterised by its few leaflets and numerous leaflet lobes which are short, coriaceous and acute.

According to Dikshit & Panigrahi (Rosaceae Ind. 4: 148. 1998) var. ornithopoda is confined to Siberia. Potentilla ornithopoda var. impexa Sojak (in Folia Geobot. Phytotax. 1: 245. 1966) is the common taxon present in our country.