A slender erect herb up to 5 dm. tall; rootstock erect or ascending, with ± fleshy rootlets. Lvs radical, glab. to sparsely hairy; petioles (2)-5-16 cm. long, expanding into membr. sheaths. Laminae ± ciliate and sparsely hairy on upper surface, (1)-2-5 cm. diam., subreniform in outline, divided nearly to base into 3-(5) rather broadly cuneate, toothed or lobed segs; terminal seg. us. trilobed, lateral ± deeply and irregularly 2-3-lobed and us. again cut or toothed. Scapes solitary to few, 8-35 cm. long, us. unbranched, finely grooved, 1-fld; cauline lvs or bracts 2-3, simple to dissected, c. midway or nearer to flower. Sepals 5-7, petaloid, c. 5 mm. long, reddish to pinkish or brownish, linear to ovate, attenuate. Stamens 5-20, filaments filiform, connective very slightly produced. Achenes up to 30 or more, c. 4-5 mm. long, fusiform, gradually narrowed into a long style hooked and ± twisted at apex.

2n = 28

Perennial herb (5)-15-50 cm tall, with erect or creeping rhizome. Basal lvs few, 3-foliolate; petioles with a few appressed bristles, shallowly sulcate, 2-10-(15) cm long; leaflets divided to 1/2 way into 3 entire or 3-fid segments, sessile or shortly petiolulate, sparsely bristly above, light green above, paler beneath, cuneate at base, acute at apex, 1-3 × 1-2 cm. Subfloral lvs 3-fid, cuneate. Fls nodding, 1-1.5 cm diam., solitary; peduncle 1-10-(15) cm long, with sparse appressed bristly hairs. Perianth segments 5-(7), pinkish to reddish brown, glabrous except for minute papillae above. Achenes glabrous, in erect heads.