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Stinging Tree
Photo: C & D Frith
Australia's Wet Tropics Rainforest Life
Stinging Tree: Dendrocnide moroides
This plant prefers more open and sunny parts of the tropical
rainforest, so is therefore common along tracks. It is a member of the family Urticaceae.
It is either a single stemmed herb with stems up to 5cm wide, or
a sparingly branched shrub which stands 1-5 metres high. The leaves are large and broad,
consisting of an oval or heart-shaped blade that can grow up to 30cm long and 22cm wide.
The leaf stalk is usually 5-15cm long.
Male and female flowers are on separate plants. They have very
small flowers gathered in open bunches called panicles in the forks of leaves.
The leaves and stems are covered in thick hairs that, if touched,
inflict a painful sting. These hairs are manufactured from mineral silica, the chief
constituent of glass. If you brush against them, their tips penetrate the skin, break off,
and release an irritant poison. The effect of this sting may last for months.
There is no effective antidote known for the stinging tree, so
visitors must always be aware of these plants.
The caterpillars of white nymph butterflies as well
as several stick insects, a weevil and a chrisomelid beetle (in the ladybird
family) eat the leaves of the common stinging tree. Green possums eat the
leaves of the shiny-leafed stinging tree. (Source:
Environmental Protection Agency)
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