Oleander Nerium
Every portion of this plant is packed of toxins, making it the most dangerous plant on the planet. Oleandrin and neriine are two of the most potent. The poison of an oleander is so potent that it can even poison someone who eats honey created by bees that have ingested oleander nectar.
Rhus or wax tree (Toxicodendron succedaneum)
Black bean (Castanospermum australe) Strychnine tree (Strychnos nux-vomica) Angel's trumpets (Brugmansia spp.) Deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna)
Native plants that kill significant numbers of livestock include Cooktown ironwood in northern Australia (as little as 50 grams of leaf can contain a quantity of alkaloids that can kill a bull) and the poison peas and heart-leafed poison bush of Western Australia and Queensland respectively (Gastrolobium), which ...
Gympie gympie
The stinging leaves trigger an intense allergic reaction in its victims, sometimes even causing anaphylactic shock. The sting can cause excruciating, debilitating pain for months; people have variously described it as feeling like they are being burned by acid, electrocuted, or squashed by giant hands.
It was first found in Australia in 1901 at Bingara, New South Wales and is now found throughout most parts of New South Wales, South East Queensland, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia. Silver-leaf nightshade seriously reduces crop and pasture production and is listed as Weeds of National Significance.
Like the Angel's trumpets, deadly nightshades are common garden plants not native to Australia.
This plant is not dangerous to touch, but do make sure you wash your hands thoroughly if you've handled it to avoid ingesting the toxins that remain on your hands.
Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladonna)
Nightshade contains atropine and scopolamine in its stems, leaves, berries, and roots, and causes paralysis in the involuntary muscles of the body, including the heart. Even physical contact with the leaves may cause skin irritation.
Although the berries might be the most tempting part of Deadly nightshade, all parts of this plant are poisonous if ingested. It causes a range of symptoms including blurred vision, a rash, headaches, slurred speech, hallucinations, convulsions and eventually death.
Fortunately, bittersweet nightshade has a strong, unpleasant odor, so most animals will avoid it, and poisonings from this plant are not very frequent.
Nightshade can be so toxic that as few as two berries can kill a child. As little as 10 berries are thought to be able to kill an adult. A clinical study from 1911 showed a 12% death rate from people poisoned with nightshade. Even eating meat from animals that ate nightshade can cause nightshade poisoning!
Some consider that the antidote for the poisoning by Gympie could be the plant Cunjevoi (lat. Alocasia brisbanensis), but there is no strong evidence to confirm this. In most cases the poisoned surface is treated by a 10% solution of hydrochloric acid. This achieves neutralization of the peptide layer of the hair.
Given that plants do not have pain receptors, nerves, or a brain, they do not feel pain as we members of the animal kingdom understand it. Uprooting a carrot or trimming a hedge is not a form of botanical torture, and you can bite into that apple without worry.
excelsa. Known colloquially as the gympie gympie (from the Gubbi Gubbi/ Kabi Kabi name for the plant, gimpi gimpi), gympie stinger, and giant stinging tree (D. excelsa), this plant has the dubious honour of being arguably the most painful plant in the world.
Dendrocnide moroides, commonly known in Australia as the stinging tree, stinging bush, Queensland Stinger or gympie-gympie, is a plant in the nettle family Urticaceae found in rainforest areas of Malaysia and Australia. It is notorious for its extremely painful and long-lasting sting.
Poison ivy is a long-lived plant that persists for many decades in gardens, putting down new roots by layering. No occurrences are currently known in South Australia, but it is possible that poison ivy still exists in some old gardens. There are a few specimens in cultivation elsewhere in Australia.
Its inland taipan snakes, box jellyfish, Sydney funnel-web spiders, and stonefish all rank among the most venomous of their kind. The best illustration of Australia's deadly-animal problem may be the Elapidae snake family: a venomous group characterized by its short fangs and agile nature.
These include agapanthus, autumn crocus, clivia, daffodil, hippeastrum, hyacinth, lily of the valley, tulips and some irises. The bright yellow and red seeds are used in bush tucker, but only after the toxins have been leached out. They're poisonous if you eat them fresh from the branch.
The most common toxic indoor plants are dieffenbachia (Dumb Cane), philodendron (Philodendron), and aloe vera (Aloe Vera). These plants contain a chemical called calcium oxalate raphides or “raphides,” which can cause mouth, throat, nose, eyes, and skin irritation in humans.
The golden poison frog, Phyllobates terribilis, is the most lethal. In fact, it's the most poisonous vertebrate: the poison in one frog's skin can kill 10,000 mice, between 10-20 adult humans, or two African bull elephants.
1. Botulinum toxin. Scientists differ about the relative toxicities of substances, but they seem to agree that botulinum toxin, produced by anaerobic bacteria, is the most toxic substance known. Its LD50 is tiny – at most 1 nanogram per kilogram can kill a human.
The antidote for belladonna poisoning is Physostigmine, which is the same as for atropine 1. Physosigmine crosses the blood-brain barrier and reversibly inhibits anticholinesterase. Benzodiazepines are frequently used for sedation to control anticholinergic effects including delirium and agitation 2.
The deadliest flower in the insect world is a lifeline to farmers—and the planet. The yellow center of the 'killer chrysanthemum' contains a natural toxin that is a powerful insecticide.