Doll's-eyes

Actaea pachypoda

''Actaea pachypoda'' is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''Actaea'', of the family Ranunculaceae, native to eastern North America.
Doll's Eyes berries of the Woods White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda) woodland berries at Alleyn-et-Cawood, Québec, Canada. Actaea pachypoda,Alleyn-et-Cawood,Canada,Doll's-eyes,Geotagged,Québec,Summer,White Baneberry,berries,flora,fruits,plant

Appearance

It is an herbaceous perennial plant growing to 50 cm or more tall. It has toothed, bipinnate compound leaves up to 40 cm long and 30 cm broad. The white flowers are produced in spring in a dense raceme about 10 cm long. Its most striking feature is its fruit, a 1 cm diameter white berry, whose size, shape, and black stigma scar give the species its other common name, "doll's eyes". The berries ripen over the summer, turning into a fruit that persists on the plant until frost.
Doll's Eyes - Actaea pachypoda Leaflets are deeply saw-toothed. Above the leaves are clusters of poisonous, white berries. This plant is sometimes called Doll's Eyes because the white fruit resembles the china eyes once used in dolls. Both the berries and the entire plant are considered poisonous to humans. The berries contain cardiogenic toxins which can have an immediate sedative effect on human cardiac muscle tissue, and are the most poisonous part of the plant. Ingestion of the berries can lead to cardiac arrest and death. The berries are harmless to birds, who are the plant's primary seed dispersers. Actaea pachypoda,Doll's-eyes,Geotagged,Summer,United States,white baneberry

Habitat

White baneberry prefers clay to coarse loamy upland soils, and is found in hardwood and mixed forest stands. In cultivation it requires part to full shade, rich loamy soil, and regular water with good drainage to reproduce its native habitat.
Actaea pachypoda Actaea pachypoda (Doll's Eyes, White Baneberry) in a mature Sugar Maple forest. Minnesota is at the western edge of this species range and typically occurs in deciduous forests with rich soil. In the southeastern corner of the state up to Duluth these forests are composed of Sugar Maple, Basswood, and Red Oak. From Duluth and along the North Shore Sugar Maple is the predominant tree species (there is no Basswood or Red Oak in these stands) where Actaea pachypoda grows. The Sugar Maple forests are restricted to a narrow band on steep hills between about 300 and 700 meters above sea level. This a sort of sweet spot for the maple where the chances of a late frost during the trees' flowering period are low. This happens because cold air at night rushes downhill while warm air rises to the level of the Sugar Maple forest. Actaea pachypoda is scarce in these North Shore maple stands and occurs as scattered individuals in the woods. Actaea pachypoda,Doll's Eyes,Doll's-eyes,Geotagged,Minnesota,Sugar Maple,Summer,United States,White Baneberry

Defense

Both the berries and the entire plant are considered poisonous to humans. The berries contain cardiogenic toxins which can have an immediate sedative effect on human cardiac muscle tissue, and are the most poisonous part of the plant. Ingestion of the berries can lead to cardiac arrest and death. The berries are harmless to birds, the plant's primary seed dispersers.

References:

Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.

Taxonomy
KingdomPlantae
DivisionAngiosperms
ClassEudicots
OrderRanunculales
FamilyRanunculaceae
GenusActaea
SpeciesA. pachypoda
Photographed in
Canada
United States of America