Beautiful “crow poison” plant flowering at St. Marks NWR.

I love watching a forest recover from a prescribed burn. Almost overnight fresh vegetation arises from the blackened ground and soon the forest is more beautiful than before.

Often species which were suppressed by the thick undergrowth are free to to grow and blossom.

So it was with this beautiful plant with the unpleasant common name of “crow poison” The scientific name is Stenanthium densum and it is a member of the family Melanthiaceae.

All parts of this plant are poisonous hence the ominous name.

The images below are of cluster of crow poison flowers discovered on St. Marks National Wildlife refuge which had been recently burned.

(Click image to enlarge)