While many of us are growing monarch butterfly gardens trying to help the population recover, most of us probably don't stop to think about how poisonous that milkweed we plant for their larvae to consume a la The Very Hungry Caterpillar. It's all very beautiful and moving, but it's also dangerous to most other critters.
Monarchs and a few other insects have a specific protein to help them consume milkweed without incident, but other animals could experience seizures and heart problems if they accidentally eat it. This helps the monarch protect itself by ingesting the toxin, too. And there are other species who do the same thing--including humans!
The coffee we drink is poisonous long before it's made into our precious daily pep juice, and even then it's toxic to our companion animals. We just like the effect it has on us, so we drink it! Don't ever let cats or dogs drink coffee, though, as it can cause severe illness or even death.
What other weird plants or foods do you know of that we eat that are actually toxic? Share your favorite facts in the chat.