Aquilegia kanawarensis is a perennial flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to northern Pakistan and the Western Himalayas.
Description.
"Aquilegia kanawarensis" is a perennial herbaceous plant with a thick, branched root and a short, erect stem covered in glandular-pubescent hairs. The leaves are biternate or triternate (i.e. having three segments, each of which is biternate) and pubescent on both sides, with long stalks. The flowers are nodding and have oblong, downy, pale violet sepals. The petals are shorter than the sepals, egg-shaped, and pale yellow-white or ochre-white in colour, with straight nectar spurs. The stamens are shorter than the petals, and the anthers are oblong.
Taxonomy.
"Aquilegia kanawarensis" was formally described by the French botanist Jacques Cambessèdes in 1841 from an initial description made by his compatriot Victor Jacquemont, who collected the type specimen from a rock fissure at around altitude in Kinnaur district in Himachal Pradesh, and additional specimens from the Gombour estate on the Kashmiri border with Tibet.
Etymology.
The specific epithet "kanawarensis" means "of or from Kinnaur" (spelt "Kanaor" in the original species description), referring to the district where the species was first found.
Distribution and habitat.
"Aquilegia kanawarensis" is native to the subalpine zone of the Western Himalayas in Pakistan and India. It grows in rock fissures and humid grassy areas at elevations around .
Conservation.
, the species has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List.
Ecology.
"Aquilegia kanawarensis" flowers in August.
Uses.
In the Theeing and Parishing valleys of Astore District in Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, "Aquilegia kanawarensis" is known as "shash" and valued as an ornamental plant. It is also used medicinally in these areas as a decoction to induce perspiration, promote urination, treat urinary tract infections, combat parasites, and as an astringent and a purifying agent.