The strychnos nux vomica: When I become poisonous, I can even kill myself!

In the tropical regions of our country, there is a plant whose latex contains extremely poisonous substances. It is called Antiaris toxicaria Lesch. It is known as the most poisonous tree in the world. If the wounds of animals are contaminated by the latex of this plant, they will die immediately.

Figure 1. The strychnos nux vomica of the Tropical Forestry Center of the Chinese Academy of Forestry

1. Plant Culture

According to legend, the first person to discover that the milk of the strychnos nux vomica was highly toxic was a Dai hunter in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province. Once, while hunting, the hunter was forced to climb a tree by a huge bear, but the bear still did not let him go and chased him. At the critical moment of life and death, the hunter was quick-witted and broke off a branch to stab the bear that was climbing up the tree. As a result, a miracle suddenly happened, and the bear immediately fell to the ground and died. Since then, hunters in Xishuangbanna have learned to apply the milk of the strychnos nux vomica to arrows for hunting.

2. Tree species introduction

Antiaris lesch., also known as the arrow poison tree, is a plant of the genus Antiaris lesch. of the Moraceae family. It is an evergreen large tree, mainly distributed in tropical areas such as Yunnan, Guangdong, Guangxi and Hainan in my country, and is one of the main tree species in the Asian tropical rain forest. The plant usually has plank-like roots, gray and slightly rough bark, oval to obovate leaves, and dark green surface. Its stems, branches, leaves, etc. all contain highly toxic milky white juice.

Figure 2: Branches and leaves of Strychnos nux vomica

The milk of the strychnos nux vomica contains a highly toxic substance. Once it comes into contact with a wound, the milk enters the body through the wound and causes poisoning. The main symptoms are muscle relaxation, slowed heartbeat, and finally cardiac arrest and death. The symptoms of poisoning in animals are similar to those in humans, and death occurs within 20 minutes to 2 hours after poisoning. There is a saying about the strychnos nux vomica among the people of Xishuangbanna: "Seven steps up, eight steps down, nine steps to the ground", which means that if you are poisoned by the strychnos nux vomica, you can only walk seven steps up and eight steps down, but no matter what, you will fall to the ground and die at the ninth step.

Figure 3 The sign of the strychnos nux vomica tree at the Tropical Forestry Center of the Chinese Academy of Forestry

3. Main Value

Although the strychnos nux vomica is poisonous, it also has other application values. Its trunk is straight and has a high yield rate, making it suitable for raw materials such as plywood core, fiberboard and papermaking. Its bark fibers are slender, soft, elastic, strong, easy to degummed, and can be used as a substitute for hemp. In some ethnic minority areas in Yunnan Province, the bark of the strychnos nux vomica tree is used to make tree blankets, mattresses and clothes. The blankets and mattresses made from it are very soft, comfortable and durable, and the clothes made from it are very soft and have good warmth retention. In addition, there is a special substance in the milk of the strychnos nux vomica, which has significant therapeutic effects in the treatment of heart disease, hypertension, etc., and is also very effective in treating breast diseases in women.

IV. Conservation Status

Although the valerian tree is easy to reproduce, the number of wild valerian tree has decreased sharply with environmental changes and habitat destruction. In order to protect this tree species, the production areas in Guangdong and Guangxi that have not established protected areas have begun to strengthen protection and expand artificial planting; in Yunnan, most of the areas where the valerian tree is distributed are within nature reserves, and local people outside the reserves also have the habit of protecting it and do not cut it down at will; most of the valerian tree in Hainan is in the Wuzhishan Tropical Rainforest National Nature Reserve in Hainan, where it is best preserved.

(Written by: Wang Tian, ​​Shi Wenshi, Wang Yanan, Chen Jianquan/Chinese Academy of Forestry)

Note: Some of the information is summarized and sorted from the Internet. Thanks to the relevant authors!