Excoecaria agallocha | |
---|---|
Excoecaria agallocha in Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary, Andhra Pradesh, India | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Malpighiales |
Family: | Euphorbiaceae |
Genus: | Excoecaria |
Species: | E. agallocha
|
Binomial name | |
Excoecaria agallocha |
Excoecaria agallocha, a mangrove species, belongs to the genus Excoecaria of the family Euphorbiaceae. The species has many common names, including blind-your-eye mangrove,[1] blinding tree,[citation needed] buta buta tree,[2] milky mangrove,[3] poisonfish tree, and river poison tree.[4] Most of the names refer to its toxic properties or its propensity to cause blindness when its latex comes into contact with the eyes.
This plant grows in saline or brackish water in tropical mangrove forests, in a distribution bounded to the west by India, to the north by Bangladesh, to the south by Australia. Within Australia, it thrives from northern New South Wales along the northern coastline around to Western Australia.