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Deadly☠️ To avoid

🍎 Manchineel

Hippomane mancinella · Euphorbiaceae

🌴 Tropical🐚 Coastline
🧠 To remember it“Little beach apple, never in your pack” — the world's most dangerous tree looks like the most harmless apple tree.
Manchineel — Hippomane mancinella

🔍 Identify it without mistakes

Beach tree of the Caribbean, Florida, and tropical America, regularly listed in the Guinness World Records as the most dangerous tree in the world. All of its parts, from the sap to the bark and the fruit that resembles a small, sweet apple (nicknamed "manzanilla de la muerte", the little apple of death), are extremely toxic and caustic; even taking shelter under the tree during a rainstorm can burn your skin, as the rain dissolves the sap from the leaves.

  1. coastal tree 5 to 15 m tall with shiny light green foliage, often marked with a red warning sign or cross in tourist areas
  2. fruit looking exactly like a small green-yellowish apple, with a deceptively sweet smell
  3. milky white and extremely caustic sap flowing at the slightest damage to the bark
  4. typically grows on tropical beach fronts, often among coconut palms
Size5 to 15 m
Floweringvariable depending on the tropical season
Habitatbeaches and coastal areas of the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, Central America, and northern South America

⚠️ Not to be confused with

Apple or small tropical edible fruit (—)—

To tell them apart: ABSOLUTE RULE in Caribbean or tropical zones: never taste a fruit resembling a small apple found under a coastal tree without absolute certainty of identification, and never take shelter under this tree during rain; local authorities generally mark manchineel trees accessible to the public with red paint or a sign

☠️ What kills

nomPhorbol esters and hippomanin (violent caustic diterpenes), present throughout the sap, fruit, and wood
dose letale estimeea single fruit consumed can be fatal; the sap alone, upon prolonged contact with the eyes or an open wound, can cause severe lesions (Guinness World Records ranks the species as the most dangerous tree in the world; approx, no standardized human dose)
delaia few minutes for skin or oral burns, a few hours for severe digestive complications
symptomesintense burning and blistering on contact with sap, severe oral and esophageal burning if the fruit is ingested, violent vomiting and diarrhea, risk of temporary or even permanent blindness in case of eye contact
antidoteno antidote; immediate abundant rinsing in case of skin or eye contact, emergency hospital care in case of ingestion
morts documenteesyes — documented deaths from fruit ingestion, particularly among tourists unfamiliar with the species; historical cases also report severe injuries from arrows dipped in its sap used by indigenous peoples of the pre-Columbian Caribbean

First steps : Never touch or taste this tree or its fruit; in case of contact with the sap, rinse abundantly and immediately with clean water (never seawater) and seek emergency medical attention. If ingested, call local emergency services immediately, do not induce vomiting, and stay away from any shelter under this tree during rain.

Sources (2)

No entry replaces a certain identification in the field, or medical advice. When in doubt: don't eat it. If ingestion is suspected: poison control or 112/911.