Poison Ivy
(Toxicondendron radicans)
I was digging around in the woods this afternoon, looking for some seeds. I ran across poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) and one of the impostor species—Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), above.
I thought I would share some of my photos of the 4 most common poisonous plants one might encounter in Florida along with some of the imposters; Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, Poison Sumac, and Poisonwood. All 4 of these species contain urushiol that causes skin and mucous membrane irritation to humans in differing degrees of severity depending on how allergic one is to urushiol. The most poisonous are also the most rare (Poisonwood and Poison Sumac), but all 4 can cause severe discomfort if one is susceptible to urushiol poisoning.
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Poison Ivy really should be the state plant of Florida, it is everywhere if you get into the woods, parks, riverbanks, streams, ditches, you will encounter poison ivy even if you don't notice the plant.
Sometimes the leaves are pointed or notched like above, on a mature vine along the Spring-to-Spring Trail in Volusia County.
Other times the leaves of Poison Ivy are really smooth and fleshy, like above, in the Little Big Econ State Forest.
Sometimes the Poison Ivy is so well established that you cannot tell where the ivy ends and the tree begins. Above, on a tree near the St. Johns River in Debary a very old vine of thick poison ivy covers a sweet gum tree.
Other times it is more obvious that Poison Ivy is growing up a tree, it is always 3-leaved though the leaves can be either nothched-or smooth. In the winter it is easy to spot as it turns a bright red if there is cold weather. In Central Florida that is a big "if" in recent years.
Here, I put my hand for scale on a huge Poison Ivy vine with limbs sticking out in the Silver Springs Park in Ocala.
If one is really allergic they probably shouldn't poke at poison ivy like I've done in these images—above and below. I did this to provide some scale of the size of the leaves and to note which species is poisonous and which is not. I've spent my life in the forests so I've developed an immunity of sorts to most toxins that I encounter, like Poison Ivy.
Rule: 3-leaved—notched leaves or not—its likely poison.
Virginia Creeper
(Parthenocissus quinquefolia)
(a harmless imposter)
The most common imposter in Florida is Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia). In the image above Virginia Creeper is in the top above my finger while I'm touching the Poison Ivy.
Virginia Creeper usually has 5-leaves that are usually notched.
Virginia Creepers tendrils (roots; above) attach to trees or houses or fences with little pads, unlike Poison Ivy which attaches with hairy roots.
Virginia Creeper at first glance can look a lot like Poison Ivy, but they are very different. Virginia Creeper is in the grape family and contains no toxins.
Blackberry
(Rubus argutus)
Another common imposter of Poison Ivy and Poison Oak in Florida is Sawtooth Blackberry.
While Blackberry is not poisonous it is a wicked briar and if you tangle with it, you might be just as miserable as if you stuck your hand in a Poison Ivy vine.
Once the blooms are off the Blackberry briars in Spring they look a lot like Poison Oak or Poison Ivy.
Poison Oak
(Toxicondendron pubescens)
While Poison Oak occurs in all of the lower 48 states naturally, you're not likely to run into it in the damp woods of Florida. It is confirmed in the forests and woodlands from north Central Florida northward, but I've rarely come upon it. It occurs as a small bush or shrub rather than a vine (to 3 feet, 1 m) and prefers dry locations which are rare in Florida's summer. It is more likely to be found in mountainous terrain. It looks a lot like Poison Sumac as you can see in the image above taken in early fall.
Poison Sumac
(Toxicondendron vernix)
Poison Sumac occurs as a shrub or small tree growing to 20-feet (7 m). You're less likely to encounter Sumac in Florida than its imposter, Winged Sumac (Rhus copallinum) which has a similar appearance but is nonallergenic relative that grows throughout Florida.
How to tell them apart? Sumac is more allergenic than poison ivy or poison oak. It has leaves of 7 - 13 leaflets arranged in pairs with a single leaflet at the end of the midrib. Winged Sumac has a similar appearance but its leaves have many more leaflets usually in denser clusters (9 - 23 leaflets) with clusters of red berries (below). Again, you are much more likely to encounter Winged Sumac (non-poisonous; below) than Poison Sumac.
Poisonwood
(Metoplum toxiferum)
Poisonwood is an evergreen shrub or tree that grows 25-35 feet tall (to 12 m) in hammocks, pinelands, and sandy ares near saltwater. It is particularly abundant in the Florida Keys. You'll likely only encounter this from Martin County south in Florida. If you're anywhere you think there might be Poisonwood growing you should not walk in that area during rain. Just rain dripping from the tree contains enough urushiol to ruin your Florida vacation.
Poisonwood looks like several common shrubs found in Florida. The telltale sign the plant is Poisonwood and not a harmless mimic is the bark (above), often peeling and orangish in color.
and a few less common
but equally poisonous. . .
5. Spotted Water Hemlock
(Cicuta maculata)
Deceptively delicate and beautiful Spotted Water Hemlock looks a lot like Wild Carrot, Queen Anne's Lace, or Dropwort, but it is something entirely different. Water hemlock is one of the most toxic plants known to man. All parts of the plant are extremely poisonous. It is generally taller and grows in larger stands than the aforementioned mimics and it has spotted stems from which its name is derived. Despite containing the virulent poison cicutoxin, of which a single drop is enough to kill some humans, the Seminoles used a watered down application of Cicuta to treat fever and the Osage used a Cicuta root preparation to treat bruises, swelling and to reduce inflammation. The specimen above was photographed on the west side of Lake Harris (near Leesburg, Florida) in Singletary Park. A kid was picking the flowers. I told his Mom that was not a good idea. This plant is rare, grows mostly in wetlands along lakeshores, and is easily identified by the spots (circles) on its stems and the many clusters of tiny flowers forming one big bunch of blooms.
6. Elderberry
(Sambucus nigra canadensis)
Elderberry blooms are spectacular but the plant is very poisonous. This Florida native shrub or small tree typically grows to 10 feet or taller before it blooms. It is commonly found in moist and wet open places: in swamps, and on banks of canals, but can also be found in random disturbed lots thriving with little effort.
Elderberry produces hanging clusters of blue-black, fleshy berries (below) in late summer. The berries are toxic when raw, but edible, and quite tasty when cooked correctly.
Note that many species of aquatic plants have large clusters of white flowers. Some of these plants are edible. However, some are extremely toxic. Because these plants are easily confused it is best to avoid eating any aquatic plant that has large clusters of white flowers.
edible or toxic?
how easy is it to tell the difference?
Both are Florida natives. One is a great, refreshing treat when properly prepared, the other is poisoned with saponins, oxalates, and phytolacine. On the left is pokeweed (Phytolacca americana, the berries, seeds and roots are very poisonous) on the right are ripe elderberries which are edible if handled correctly (see above) but poisonous otherwise. Pokeweed is more common occurring in suburban lawns, on roadsides around mailboxes, just about anywhere in Florida one can find pokeweed growing to 10-feet or taller and sporting these Elderberry-like berries in summer.
7. Buttonbush
(Cephalanthus occidentalis)
Lovely, but quite poisonous containing cephalathin which if eaten causes paralysis, convulsions, or worse. Buttonbush prefers swampy locations in the sun. I've encountered only 3 of these bushes in my travels this summer, each near a boardwalk in a swampy area.
One was in the Everglades, one on Lake George, and this specimen in the Little-Big Econ State Forest. So, suffice to say it is rare. On my encounter with the plant in the Everglades a tourist was breaking off leaves and smelling them to identify the plant. I told them probably not a great idea to be messing with this one.
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| Buttonbush requires a lot of water so it will generally be at water's edge or growing in a swamp or river. It inspires an irresistible urge to reach out and touch. Resist that urge. |
8. Tread Softly
(Cnidoscolus stimulosus)
This perennial herb is covered with stinging hairs, and native to North America. A member of the Euphorbiaceae (spurge family), it is not a true nettle, but most nettles contain stinging hairs.
Tread Softly prefers poor quality, sandy, well-drained soils and is most often seen in pine/oak forests, or sandhills but recently was seen in bloom at Canaveral National Seashore both in the seaward dunes and on the Indian River Lagoon.
As the common names imply, the urticating hairs on this plant contain a caustic irritant that inflicts a painful sting to those who contact it with bare skin.
We've ReWatched
during the Pandemic:
L-R, Ben Robson ("Craig"), Scott Speedman ("Baz"), and Jake Weary ("Deran")
The Cody Brothers from TNTs Crime Family ANIMAL KINGDOM
and
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| Conor McGregor nude |
Who has 15.3 million instagram followers and counting? Yep. You guessed it The Notorious Conor McGregor. He's an avid instagrammer and comes out with some interesting quotes including noting that "Everything I do is money." That would seem to be true. His payday for the Fight of the Millennium was reported to be north of $75,000,000. Yes, that's $75 MILLION.
How much did Mayweather and McGregor earn from the fight?
The McGregor-Mayweather fight with almost five million pay-per-view buys which meant a windfall of about £363.5million ($475million) from TV viewings alone.
It cost approximately $100 to watch the fight on PPV in the US.
Additional sponsorship deals, ticket sales and Nevada betting fees propeled the fight into the history books.
Mayweather netted at least £78.5million ($100 million) from the fight, with McGregor reported to have agreed a smaller fee.
The Irishman pocketed £12million ($15 million) less than Mayweather, according to UFC President Dana White.
He (Mayweather) felt like he’s the A-side and thus he should get more of it.
All purses are estimates as the pair signed confidentiality agreements that restrict them from revealing financial details about the fight and the totals are likely to increase further once bonuses are taken into account.
After he defeated Pacquiao, Mayweather walked away with about £180million ($240million), according to Forbes.
The American, who went 50-0 beating McGregor, pushed his career earnings to over $1 billion (£765million). So will he be broke again next year? Maybe.
The undefeated boxer became only the third athlete in history to earn ten-figures in their sporting career after Michael Jordan ($1.5billion) and Tiger Woods ($1.4billion).
Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Michael Schumacher would also be part of the exclusive club if you adjusted for inflation, Forbes reported.
