Cerbera odollam
Deadly poisonous — never eat any part of it.
If someone has eaten it, call emergency services or your poison control centre.
The story
In Madagascar, the suicide tree has a notorious reputation tied to ancient trials by ordeal. People would consume the seeds to prove their innocence or guilt, as the effects of the poison were well-known. This practice has led to thousands of deaths over the years, embedding the tree deeply in local folklore and cultural history.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
- Family
- Apocynaceae
About
Cerbera odollam is a tree species in the family Apocynaceae commonly known as the suicide tree or pong-pong. It bears a fruit known as othalanga whose seeds yield a potent poison called cerberin. It has historically been used in trials by ordeal, especially in Madagascar, where it has caused thousands of deaths annually, and continues to be used for suicide, particularly in Kerala, India. It can cause fatal heart arrhythmias with just one kernel and is responsible for numerous poisonings due to its easily masked taste and limited testing.
Ecology
How it lives
- Propagated by
- Seed
Full detailsevery field on the record, to copy
- Name
- Cerbera odollam
- Slug
- cerbera-odollam
- Kingdom
- Plantae
- Family
- Apocynaceae
- Genus
- Cerbera
- Species
- odollam
- Wikidata QID
- Q191514
- Propagule type
- seed
- Container suitable
- No
- Indoor suitable
- No
- OSSI pledged
- No
- Hazard level
- 5
- Data completeness
- 43
Generated sections & citations
summarywikipedia
fun_facts_kidsllm_openai · confidence 0.90
- wikipedia (description.summary) — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerbera_odollam
fun_facts_adultllm_openai · confidence 0.90
- wikipedia (description.summary) — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerbera_odollam
storyllm_openai · confidence 0.90
- wikipedia (description.summary) — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerbera_odollam
how_to_usellm_openai · confidence 0.90
- wikipedia (description.summary) — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerbera_odollam