Hippomane mancinella
Hippomane mancinella
Safety & Hazards
The attractive fruits are toxic and can cause serious illness or even death if ingested[1]. The milky sap is poisonous if taken internally, and upon contact with the skin causes severe inflammation in some persons[2]. Others are apparently immune to the external effects of the juice[2]. It is reported that the latex was used by the Caribs for poisoning arrows[2]. Smoke from the burning wood is dangerous to the eyes[2]. The early Spaniards had such unfortunate experiences with the tree that they gave it a dark reputation indeed, claiming that a person who even sat beneath a tree would be blinded or would die, statements long ago proved false. It is possible, however, that people resting or passing beneath the trees during rain might be harmed[2].
Cultivation Details
A tree of lowland tropical areas.
Propagation
Seed - Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Hippomane+mancinella>
Pollinators
Bees
References
- [1]Common Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands — Little E.L.; Wadsworth F.H. · USDA, Forest Service; Washington. · 1964 ↩︎Contains detailed information, and usually an illustration, on 250 tree species, including both native and exotic species.
- [2]Flora of Guatemala — Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark · 1946 - 1976 · http://www.archive.org/ ↩︎A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/
- [3]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
- [4]Flowering Plants of Jamaica — Adams. C.D. · University of the West Indies; Jamaica. · 1972 ↩︎A terse treatment of the flowering plants of Jamaica, with a botanical description of each plant, notes on habitat etc.
- [5]Medicinal Plants of the Guianas — DeFilipps, R. A.; Maina, S. L.; & Crepin, J. · Smithsonian Museum · http://botany.si.edu/bdg/medicinal/index.html ↩︎A down-loadable PDF document of a book in pre-publication awaiting illustration. An excellent, if rather terse, guide to the traditional medicinal uses of the plants of the region
- [6]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.