Sacred Datura, Datura wrightii, San Diego, California
3,512 views · Published 6 July 2012 · 1:40 · Indexed 28 September 2026
Channel: Melvin Wei · 2012 · Science & Technology
At first I thought this plant was some variant of the Buffalo Gourd but it isn't. It doesn't seem to be particularly prolific but it is a shrub instead of a ground-hugging vine, with purple fuzzy stems and darker, more wrinkled foliage. The flowers do look similar in size and morphology but are white instead of yellow. It took me a while to identify this plant as Sacred Datura, or Datura wrightii, a highly poisonous plant that classifies as a deliriant and an anticholinergic agent based on the compounds within it. I know it sounds like hindsight but this plant's appearance gave me the creeps with its super dark green foliage and purple fuzzy stems. Let's just say that if I was stranded out in the wilderness this plant wouldn't be on my menu just based on appearances alone. Users who ingest parts of this plant and get administered anesthetics can die from the combination. The plant seems to go by many, many nicknames, such as Western Jimson Weed and Indian Whiskey. The Native Americans sometimes used this for its hallucinogenic effects.
More from this channel
-
0:44
Temporary Cloud Forest During Winter Rains, Idyllwild, California
-
0:21
Granary Tree for Acorn Woodpeckers, Idyllwild, California
-
0:35
What's in Tap Water
-
0:26
Tufted Puffin Goes Berserk in Monterey Bay Aquarium
-
1:03
Chipmunk Eats Buds in Muir Woods National Monument, Mill Valley, California
-
4:31
California Ground Squirrel Eats White Bread
-
1:26
Brewer's Blackbird Eats Bread Crumbs and Bird Seed in Temecula, California
-
1:52
Wary Desert Cottontail Rabbit Eventually Drops Its Guard, Carlsbad, California