The Institute for Regional Conservation

Plants of the Florida Keys · Plants by Conservation Areas · Plants by Habitat
Quick Search · Advanced Search

Please scroll to the bottom for more images.

Floristic Inventory of the Florida Keys Database Online

Metopium toxiferum (L.) Krug & Urb.
Poisonwood, Florida poisontree

Copyright by: Keith A. Bradley

Family: Anacardiaceae

Group: Dicot

Substrate: Terrestrial

Habit: Tree

Perennation: Perennial

Native Range: Eastern South Florida and the Greater Antilles.

IRC SOUTH FLORIDA Status: Secure

Map of select IRC data for peninsular Florida

SOUTH FLORIDA Occurrence: Present

SOUTH FLORIDA Native Status: Native

SOUTH FLORIDA Cultivated Status: Cultivated

Comments: Visit our Natives For Your Neighborhood website for more information and images. For a digitized image of Elbert Little's Florida range map, visit the Exploring Florida website. See also a 2022 post on the Treasure Coast Natives blog about the toxicity and berries of Poisonwood.

Synonyms: Rhus metopium.

FLORIDA KEYS Occurrence: Present

FLORIDA KEYS Native Status: Native

IRC FLORIDA KEYS Status: Secure

Map of select IRC data for the Florida Keys

Florida Keys History and Distribution: First collected between 1838 and 1853 by John Loomis Blodgett on the island of Key West. Reported in 1913 by John Kunkel Small for hammocks and coastal sand dunes throughout the Florida Keys. We consider this native and extant throughout the Florida Keys.

Other data on Metopium toxiferum available from :

	Occurrence	Native Status
Metopium toxiferum has been reported from the following 28 conservation areas in the FLORIDA KEYS :
Attwood Addition, Indian Key Historic State Park	Present	Native
Bahia Honda State Park	Present	Native
Big Torch Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Biscayne National Park, Florida Keys Section	Present	Native
Blue Heron Hammock, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge	Present	Native
Curry Hammock State Park	Present	Native
Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammocks Botanical State Park	Present	Native
Dove Creek Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge	Present	Native
Indian Key Historic State Park	Present	Native
John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park	Present	Native
Key West National Wildlife Refuge	Present	Native
Lake San Pedro Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park	Present	Native
Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park, Klopp Tract	Present	Native
Little Hamaca Park	Present	Native
Little Torch Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Long Key State Park	Present	Native
Middle Torch Hammocks Parcel 3063, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
National Key Deer Refuge	Present	Native
Ramrod Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Snake Creek Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Spoonbill Sound Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Sugarloaf Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Torchwood Hammock Preserve	Present	Native
Wahoo Hammocks, Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area	Present	Native
Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park	Present	Native