The Manchineel tree, native to the Western Hemisphere, is known as the most poisonous trees in the world. In areas where it grows - Florida, the Caribbean and the Bahamas - the manchineel is often marked with a red band to warn passersby not to get too close to it.
Trees are poisonous so many levels if you ever see one, it is better to stay at least a few yards away from it. The fruit resembles a small apple, but eating one you can go right to the emergency room. It is supposedly named 'manzanita de la muerte' (little apple of death) by Christopher Columbus. But it can be the least dangerous part of the tree only.
The milky white sap manchineel is incredibly caustic and poisonous as well - even a drop can cause skin blisters , dermatitis , inflammation or burns . This happens a lot with the unsuspecting traveler to use the tree for shelter from the rain . Consume so cynical that even the rain drops coming from the branch that can cause burns . Bark is poisonous too - burning it releases smoke that causes temporary ( and in some cases , permanent ) blindness . Considering all of the ways that can hurt you , it 's no wonder the manchineel currently hold the Guinness record for the most dangerous of the world tree .
Legend has it that one of the most infamous death by poison manchineel Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon . He returned to Florida in 1521 in search of gold and to lay claim to the place he thought he had discovered . Of course, the natives are not exactly going to hand over their land to him . In the struggle that took place , an arrow laced with manchineel juice Ponce de Leon struck the leg , leading to his long drawn out death .
Nicola H Strickland , a consultant radiologist , published an article in the British Medical Journal about how he ate apples manchineel during the holiday on the Caribbean island of Tobago . " While searching for exotic shells and coral fragments , I saw some green fruit among the scattered coconuts and mangoes lying on the beach , " he wrote . " They are round, the size of a tangerine , and that apparently fell from a large tree with silvery leaves and tree based slant . "
" When I rashly took a bite from the fruit and found it pleasantly sweet . Partook also my friend ( at my suggestion ) . Moments later we noticed a strange feeling grumpy in our mouth , slowly progressed to a burning , tearing sensation and tightness of the throat . "
Nicola wrote that the symptoms worsened over the next two hours , and they can not swallow any food because of the excruciating pain in their throats . Milk is the only thing they found little pampering . It took eight hours for all the symptoms gradually subside .
Manchineel trees have glossy green , oval leaves and can grow over 50 feet tall . Apparently they lure people into a trap - providing shade and fruit tastes sweet at first but later have devastating effects . Fortunately, damage was rare thanks to warning signs about the dangers tree .