Toxic - autumn crocus

Toxin:
> 30 different tropolone alkaloids, esp:

• colchicine
• colchicine
• colchicoside
• demecolcine

 

Toxic plant parts:

• Whole plant:
  • Flowers
  • seeds
  • leaves
  • tubers
• Intoxication often via hay/silage: toxic effect remains during drying or ensiling and storage (over years)

 

Occurrence:

• damp to wet pastures and meadows
• roadsides
• in the area of shady forests
• Sometimes an ornamental garden plant

Dangerous season: all year round

• Leaves and seeds: Spring
• Fruit ripening: April to June
• Flowering time: August to November
• All year round in hay

 

Tip:

Recommend the owner: inside the apps "PlantNet" or "Flora Incognita" for plant identification. PlantNet can identify plants from photos and was developed by four French research organisations.

 

Possible symptoms:

• severe irritation of the mucous membranes of the gastrointestinal tract with burning and scratching in the oral cavity
• Increased saliva production
• difficulty swallowing
• colic
• cardiac arrhythmia
• oedema
• Coagulation disorders: bloody diarrhoea, bloody urine
• Excitatory effect: cramps
• later paralysing effect
• Circulatory shock
• respiratory distress
• Death due to respiratory paralysis within 1-7 days after toxin ingestion

 

Caution:

Can be ingested by foals via mare's milk (secondary intoxication)

 

Onset of the first symptoms:

2-48 hours after toxin ingestion

 

Measures:

• if intoxication is suspected, immediately replace the roughage with uncontaminated roughage
• initiate detoxification and excretion in the case of mild intoxication
• Symptomatic emergency therapy

 

Prognosis:

poor to very poor