The most toxic plant in South Africa is…
You’ve probably heard of the Gympie Gympie or the Manchineel tree, but South Africa has its own nightmare plant called Gifblaar (Dichapetalum cymosum). “Gifblaar” literally means “poison leaf,” which is pretty appropriate.
It grows in parts of southern Africa and contains monofluoroacetate, an extremely toxic compound that has also been used in rat poison. What I find wild, though, is how this plant grows.
Above ground, it doesn’t look like much. You basically see a small cluster of green leaves, sometimes only around 15 cm high. But underneath is a huge woody root system extending deep into the ground. So what looks like a tiny shrub is really just the visible part of a much larger underground plant. That also means it can put out fresh green leaves when the surrounding veld is still dry. For cattle, sheep, or goats wandering around looking for something green to eat, it can be very tempting.
And this is where it gets nasty. Animals can apparently eat Gifblaar without immediately looking sick. The danger becomes much worse when they drink water afterward, which is why poisoned livestock have sometimes been found dead around watering points. The toxin basically screws with the body’s ability to produce energy, with the heart being particularly vulnerable. There’s also no specific antidote, so treatment is mostly about trying to keep the animal alive long enough to metabolize and eliminate the toxin.
It’s such a bizarre plant. From above it looks like a completely unremarkable patch of leaves, while most of the plant is hidden underground and those innocent-looking leaves can be lethal to livestock. South African veld really does have some ridiculous stuff growing in it…