Pin cherry
General poisoning notes:
Pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica) is a native tree found throughout most of Canada. The leaves have an average N rate of 91 mg/100 g, with as much as 143 mg/100 g recorded. These levels are potentially lethal to livestock if ingested. M. Pitcher (personal communication) notes that captive moose in Newfoundland and Alberta nature parks and zoos regurgitate a gray, chalky, paste-like substance when fed pin cherry browse mixed with their normal browse, white birch (Betula papyrifera). Livestock that ingest pin cherry plant material can be poisoned (Kingsbury 1964).
Nomenclature:
Scientific Name: Prunus pensylvanica L. f.
Vernacular name(s): pin cherry
Scientific family name: Rosaceae
Vernacular family name: rose
Prunus pensylvanica L. f.
Geographic Information
Alberta, British Columbia, Labrador, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan
Toxic parts:
Leaves
Toxic plant chemicals:
Amygdalin
Amygdalin
Prunasin
Prunasin
Chemical diagram(s) are courtesy of Ruth McDiarmid, Biochemistry Technician, Kamloops Range Station, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Kamploops, British Columbia, Canada.
Animals/Human Poisoning:
Note: When an animal is listed without additional information, the literature (as of 1993) contained no detailed explanation.
Moose
General symptoms of poisoning:
Vomiting.
Notes on poisoning:
M. Pitcher (personal communication) states that captive moose develop an adverse reaction to pin cherry when the plant is inadvertently mixed with their usual browse, white birch (Betula papyrifera). The moose regurgitate a gray, chalky paste-like substance. This has been noted both in Newfoundland and Alberta.
