General poisoning notes:

Marsh horsetail (Equisetum palustre) is a native horsetail growing across Canada. This plant has poisoned cattle and, rarely, sheep. In addition to thiaminase, it contains an alkaloid, that causes the toxicity (Kingsbury 1964, Cooper and Johnson 1984).

References:

Cooper, M. R., Johnson, A. W. 1984. Poisonous plants in Britain and their effects on animals and man. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, England. 305 pp.

Frohne, D., Pfander, H. J. 1983. A colour atlas of poisonous plants. Wolfe Publishing Ltd., London, England. 291 pp.

Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., USA. 626 pp.

Nomenclature:

Scientific Name: Equisetum palustre L.
 

Vernacular name(s): marsh horsetail

Scientific family name: Equisetaceae

Vernacular family name: horsetail

Go to ITIS*^ca for more taxonomic information on: Equisetum palustre

References:

Agriculture Quebec. 1975. Noms des maladies des plantes du Canada/ Names of plant diseases in Canada. , Quebec City, Que., Canada. 288 pp.

Alex, J. F., Cayouette, R., Mulligan, G. A. 1980. Common and botanical names of weeds in Canada/Noms populaire et scientifiques des plantes nuisibles du Canada. Revised. Agric. Can. Publ., Ottawa, Ont., Canada. 132 pp.

Bailey, L. H., Bailey, E. Z. 1976. Hortus third. Revised. MacMillan, New York, N.Y., USA. 1290 pp.

Scoggan, H. J. 1978, 1979. The flora of Canada. Nat. Mus. Nat. Sci. (Ottawa) Publ. Bot. 7(1)-7(4). 1711 pp.

Van Wijk, H. L. 1911. A dictionary of plant names. Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, The Netherlands. 1444 pp.

Victorin, M. 1964. Flore Laurentienne. 2nd ed. Univ. Montreal, Montreal, Que., Canada. 952 pp.

Geographic Information

Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland
Northwest Territories
Nova Scotia
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Quebec
Saskatchewan
Yukon Territory
 

References:

Bailey, L. H., Bailey, E. Z. 1976. Hortus third. Revised. MacMillan, New York, N.Y., USA. 1290 pp.

Boivin, B. 1966, 1967. Énumération des plantes du Canada. Provencheria 6. Nat. Can. (Que.) 93: 253-274; 371-437; 583-646; 989-1063. 94: 131-157; 471-528; 625-655.

Image or illustration

marsh horsetail:

Images: images.google.com

Notes on Poisonous plant parts:

Marsh horsetail has separate fertile and sterile stems. Unlike field horsetail, both types of fronds are greenish, with the added fruiting sporangia body on top of the fertile frond.

Toxic parts:

leaves
stems
 

References:

Frohne, D., Pfander, H. J. 1983. A colour atlas of poisonous plants. Wolfe Publishing Ltd., London, England. 291 pp.

Notes on Toxic plant chemicals:

Palustrine, an alkaloid, has been found in marsh horsetail. This alkaloid may contribute to the poisoning of cattle by this plant. Thiaminase activity is usually not a problem in ruminants because thiamine is produced in the rumen. Therefore, the presence of alkaloids is suspected to cause the toxic responses. The alkaloid content varies greatly (96-302 mg/100 g of dry weight). Frosted plant material quickly loses most of its alkaloid content, whereas air-dried marsh horsetail can keep its alkaloid content for years (Frohne and Pfander 1983).

Toxic plant chemicals:

palustrine
thiaminase
 

References:

Frohne, D., Pfander, H. J. 1983. A colour atlas of poisonous plants. Wolfe Publishing Ltd., London, England. 291 pp.

Animals/Human Poisoning:

Note: When an animal is listed without additional information, the literature (as of 1993) contained no detailed explanation.

Cattle

General symptoms of poisoning:

diarrhea
 

References:

Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., USA. 626 pp.

Horses

Sheep

General symptoms of poisoning:

diarrhea
muscle, weakness of
sweating
 

References:

Cooper, M. R., Johnson, A. W. 1984. Poisonous plants in Britain and their effects on animals and man. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, England. 305 pp.

Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., USA. 626 pp.