''Chamaeleon gummifer'', also known as distaff thistle, piney thistle or stemless atractylis, is a

thistle Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterized by leaves with sharp spikes on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the planton the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves. T ...

in the ''

Chamaeleon Chamaeleon () is a small constellation in the deep southern sky. It is named after the chameleon, a kind of lizard. It was first defined in the 16th century. History Chamaeleon was one of twelve constellations created by Petrus Plancius f ...

'' genus. Formerly, it was placed in the '' Atractylis'' genus. It is native to the Mediterranean basin, where it can be found in various habitats, including cultivated- or uncultivated fields and forests. It is a

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

herb producing a stemless, pinkish flower. The plant has a history of use in folk medicine, but it is very toxic due to the presence of

atractyloside Atractyloside (ATR) is a natural, toxic glycoside present in numerous plant species worldwide in the daisy family including '' Atractylis gummifera'' and '' Callilepis laureola'', and it's used for a variety of therapeutic, religious, and toxic ...

and carboxyatractyloside.

Description

''Chamaeleon gummifer'' is a perennial thistle with a long

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...

extending up to 40 cm and spiky leaves emanating from its center. A pinkish

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

grows in the center, seen as a

capitulum capitulum (plural capitula) may refer to: *the Latin word for chapter ** an index or list of chapters at the head of a gospel manuscript ** a short reading in the Liturgy of the Hours *** derived from which, it is the Latin for the assembly known ...

consisting of many small threadlike flowers. The inflorescence is surrounded by spiny

bracts In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves in size, color, shape or texture. They also loo ...

. Unusual compared to other thistles is the fact that the inflorescence of ''Chamaeleon gummifer'' does not grow on a stem. The ripe fruit of the plant may ooze a white or yellowish gummy latex produced by the rhizome. ''Chamaeleon gummifer'' flowers in late summer or early autumn.

Distribution

''Chamaeleon gummifer'' can be found along the Mediterranean basin, including Northern Africa, the Iberian Peninsula, Italy, Greece and Malta. It grows in various habitats and on various substrates, including in cultivated- or uncultivated fields, shrublands, forests and in rocklands. It is rated as

Least Concern A least-concern species is a species that has been evaluated and categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as not being a focus of wildlife conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wil ...

on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

Toxicity

The toxicity of ''Chamaeleon gummifer'' is thought to be caused by two related

glycosides In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...

and carboxyatractyloside. In Morocco, ''Chamaeleon gummifer'' is a common cause of plant poisoning, with children being especially vulnerable to severe effects. Accidental ingestion of the plant can be due to confusion with the

artichoke The artichoke (''Cynara cardunculus'' var. ''scolymus''),Rottenberg, A., and D. Zohary, 1996: "The wild ancestry of the cultivated artichoke." Genet. Res. Crop Evol. 43, 53–58. also known by the other names: French artichoke, globe artichoke, ...

thistle, or due to use of its gummy discharge as a chewing gum. Fatal cases of poisoning are not uncommon, even with treatment of symptoms. At least 98 fatalities occurred due to ''Chamaeleon gummifer'' poisoning in Morocco between 1981 and 2004, most of whom were children under the age of 16. Severe cases may be associated with liver and kidney failure. There is currently no specific treatment to poisoning by ''Chamaeleon gummifer''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q50840156, from2=Q21871946, from3=Q1554431 gummifer Flora of North Africa Flora of Southwestern Europe Flora of Southeastern Europe