CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · Science & Nature

Rorippa sessiliflora

species of plant

Specimen drawers, botanical folios and brass scientific instruments under study light
Science and natureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionFeb 12, 2025
Entity authorityQ15548864
Source-derived summary

Rorippa sessiliflora, commonly known as stalkless yellowcress, is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae (conserved name Cruciferae) .

Distribution

Rorippa sessiliflora is native to midwestern and eastern United States from South Dakota south to Texas and east from Maryland south through Florida. The species is more frequent in the midwest than southeast. The northerly distribution limit coincides with the southern edge of the Wisconsin glaciation, with the occasional collections from previously glaciated areas further north and in Massachusetts possibly attributable to anthropogenic dispersal.

Habitat

The species grows in areas that are muddy and subject to disturbance, such as on banks of streams, ponds and lakes, as well as on roadsides, and fallow fields.

Description

Rorippa sessiliflora is glabrous (hairless) annual with erect stems and whose species epithet "sessiliflora" refers to the plant's short pedicels, between 0.5 – 2 mm in length. Stuckey notes other distinctive features for this species as compared to other members of the genus Rorippa, including thick siliques that are wedge-shaped at the base. Although some sources note the absence of petals, Radford et al. suggest the presence of diminutive petals less than 1.5 mm long. Stuckey indicates that the flowers may deviate from typical traits of crucifers, with variable numbers of stamen (3–6) within a plant and occasional anther fusion.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Rorippa sessiliflora” is species of plant. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Rorippa, sessiliflora and species, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA sound reference starting point where classification, measurement and the date of the underlying evidence remain visible. The current 217-word lead offers orientation but no explicit four-digit date, so chronology should not be assumed. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. For this dossier, Rorippa, sessiliflora and species is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “species of plant” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 12, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q15548864. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.

Critical limits

A general summary may omit uncertainty, sample limits or methodological disagreement that is explicit in the technical record. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Rorippa sessiliflora”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Rorippa sessiliflora primary sources, Rorippa sessiliflora archive and Rorippa research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Rorippa sessiliflora”?
  2. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
  3. Is the terminology current, historical or disputed?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Rorippa sessiliflora” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.