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I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

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Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#11

Post by a-priori »

streety wrote: post #9
forinti wrote: post #4

There's a show on the Discovery Channel about people who get lost in the wilderness. One thing I've noticed is that they spend all their energy and time trying to get back to civilisation, so they very rapidly get worn down. I think a good strategy when you are lost in the wild is to immediately start keeping an eye out for shelter, food, and water. The article gives some good tips, but they take time if you want to…

There is a saying that, "you can travel across the land or live off the land but not both." You may be able to improve your chances over the short term by concentrating on finding food but if you want to survive long term your best chance may be to get back to civilisation and get back quick. Having said that as with most situations the optimal strategy is probably somewhere between the two extremes.

If you have no idea how to get back to civilization, your best strategy is to wait for search and rescue. Wandering aimlessly is the worst thing you can do.

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#13

Post by fernando »

My all time favorite answer for this question is from a book I read in Brazil. It was a jungle-survival guide from a Brazilian military:

First of all, find a monkey. Follow the monkey, and eat everything the monkey eats. If possible, eat the monkey too.

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#14

Post by elblanco »

maxklein wrote: post #6

Okay, someone a bit more intelligent than me should correct me on this: Are most poisonous plants not bitter or foul tasting? Also, apart from mushrooms, don't they usually signal their poison? Why does a plant develop poison if not to discourage animals from eating it : and if it does not signal through taste or look, how would an animal know? I know nothing about this topic, I'm actually curious.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitter_melon

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#15

Post by reginaldo »

fernando wrote: post #13

My all time favorite answer for this question is from a book I read in Brazil. It was a jungle-survival guide from a Brazilian military: First of all, find a monkey. Follow the monkey, and eat everything the monkey eats. If possible, eat the monkey too.

There are of course variations of this trick. If you can't find a monkey, either a quail or a toucan will do just fine. I have some friends who were in a military survival training mission in the Amazon.. For many days all they were able to find was swamp cabbage (palmito). Then they found a toucan... The monkey trick didn't work because the trees are very very tall.

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#16

Post by poutine »

If you must eat plants and can't watch the animals then:

Spread a bit on your skin, wait a while to see if there's a rash. Touch some to your lips and tongue, again waiting a while to see if there's a reaction. Eat a tiny bit, wait a while. Eat a larger bit and then wait. Continue upping the dose.

This is from memory from the SAS survival guide. Should take days and isn't very safe but may be the best you've got.

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#17

Post by fernando »

reginaldo wrote: post #15
fernando wrote: post #13

My all time favorite answer for this question is from a book I read in Brazil. It was a jungle-survival guide from a Brazilian military: First of all, find a monkey. Follow the monkey, and eat everything the monkey eats. If possible, eat the monkey too.

There are of course variations of this trick. If you can't find a monkey, either a quail or a toucan will do just fine. I have some friends who were in a military survival training mission in the Amazon.. For many days all they were able to find was swamp cabbage (palmito). Then they found a toucan... The monkey trick didn't work because the trees are very very tall.

I guess one common variation is the monkey eating you...

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#19

Post by ryanwaggoner »

I love how this guy clearly has no idea what he's talking about, relies primarily on a single source (US Army Survival Manual) that's based on decades of research and experience in these kinds of life-and-death situations, then proceeds to disagree with the source on multiple points. So much for fighting ignorance...

Re: I'm on a deserted island. How can I tell which plants are poisonous?

#20

Post by JshWright »

poutine wrote: post #16

If you must eat plants and can't watch the animals then: Spread a bit on your skin, wait a while to see if there's a rash. Touch some to your lips and tongue, again waiting a while to see if there's a reaction. Eat a tiny bit, wait a while. Eat a larger bit and then wait. Continue upping the dose. This is from memory from the SAS survival guide. Should take days and isn't very safe but may be the best you've got.

This sounds vaguely familiar... like I just read an article with this advice, or something...
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