Hiking tips: deadly snakes and poisonous plants explained in three new Hong Kong guides to the countryside
Hong Kong has over 50 snake species, most of which are harmless; some, though, are potentially lethal, and it’s often hard to tell them apart. A website has been created to remedy this, along with guides to dangerous local plants
In summer and autumn, the delicate yellow flowers of the Gelsemium elegans plant, also known as graceful jesamine, brighten Hong Kong’s countryside. But don’t be fooled by its innocent appearance.
Every part of the plant – root, leaf, flower, fruit and stem – is highly toxic. Eating any part of it can cause failure of the respiratory and central nervous systems, and even death.
In March 2007, an elderly couple discovered its toxic powers when they ate it while collecting plants on Lantau Island. They had mistaken it for the non-poisonous Mussaenda pubescens, a plant from the coffee family known as Buddha’s lamp.
It is an example of the hazards nature – and sometimes traditional Chinese medicine – has in store for the unwary. Snakes are another. Three new guides to identifying poisonous snakes and plants have recently been published to help users of traditional Chinese medicine and visitors to the countryside stay safe.