''Gomphocarpus fruticosus'' is a species of

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclu ...

native to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. It is also common in New Zealand where it is the main host of the monarch butterfly. The plant's tissues contain sufficient

cardenolides A cardenolide is a type of steroid. Many plants contain derivatives, collectively known as cardenolides, including many in the form of cardenolide glycosides (cardenolides that contain structural groups derived from sugars). Cardenolide glycoside ...

that consumption of significant quantities of the plant's leaves, stems, or fruit may lead to death in livestock and humans.p. 36 in The plant, also referred to as ''Narrow leaf cotton bush'', has officially been declared a pest in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. The species is closely related to '' Gomphocarpus physocarpus''.

References

External links

* fruticosus Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Butterfly food plants Flora of Southern Africa Invasive plant species in Australia {{Apocynaceae-stub