Habitat and Conditions of Poisoning of Toxic Plants in North America

This paper presents a list of important poisonous plants in North America that are toxic to both livestock and humans. The aim of this paper is to present information to help reduce the risk of poisoning. The paper emphasizes the particular plant communities in which these plants grow. Some of these plants are endemic, growing on specific soils or specific ecological sites. Others are distributed more broadly throughout a vegetation type. A few of the plants are widespread, ranging over several broad ecosystems. In diagnosing poisoning, it is important to know what plants are expected to grow in the communities the animals are grazing. A second emphasis is the conditions in which the plants are likely to be grazed or eaten. The risk of poisoning can be substantially reduced by avoiding those conditions.