species 5,403 observations

Narrow-leaf Cotton Bush

Gomphocarpus fruticosus

Field notes

Gomphocarpus fruticosus (swan plant; narrow-leaved cotton bush) is a species of plant native to South Africa. It is also common in Australia and New Zealand where it is a host of the monarch butterfly. The plant's tissues contain sufficient cardenolides that consumption of significant quantities of the plant's leaves, stems, or fruit may lead to death in livestock and humans.

The plant, also referred to as Narrow leaf cotton bush, has officially been declared a pest in Western Australia.

The species is closely related to Gomphocarpus physocarpus.

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Supports All

1 native animals
supported in the US

Range

United States

Greener is more native, amber more introduced; paler is less certain. How this was decided