Apiaceae or Umbelliferae is a family of mostly aromatic flowering plants named after the type genus Apium and commonly known as the celery, carrot or parsley family, or simply as umbellifers. It is the 16th-largest family of flowering plants, with more than 3,800 species in about 446 genera, including such well-known and economically important plants as ajwain, angelica, anise, asafoetida, caraway, carrot, celery, chervil, coriander, cumin, dill, fennel, lovage, cow parsley, parsley, parsnip and sea holly, as well as silphium, a plant whose identity is unclear and which may be extinct.
Cicutoxin is a naturally-occurring poisonous chemical compound produced by several plants from the family Apiaceae including water hemlock (Cicuta species) and water dropwort (Oenanthe crocata). The compound contains polyene, polyyne, and alcohol functional groups and is a structural isomer of oenanthotoxin, also found in water dropwort. Both of these belong to the C17-polyacetylenes chemical class.
Risus sardonicus or rictus grin is a highly characteristic, abnormal, sustained spasm of the facial muscles that appears to produce grinning. It may be caused by tetanus, strychnine poisoning, or Wilson's disease, and has been reported after judicial hanging.
Portencross is a hamlet near Farland Head in North Ayrshire, Scotland. Situated about three kilometres west of Seamill and about two kilometres south of Hunterston B nuclear power station, it is noted for Portencross Castle.
Oenanthotoxin is a toxin extracted from hemlock water-dropwort and other plants of the genus Oenanthe. It is a central nervous system poison, and acts as a noncompetitive antagonist of the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid. A case has been made for the presence of this toxin in local Oenanthe species playing a causative role in euthanasia in ancient Sardinia. It was crystallized in 1949 by Clarke and co-workers. It is structurally closely related to the toxins cicutoxin and carotatoxin. Oenanthotoxin is a C17 polyacetylene isomer of cicutoxin.
To be sardonic is to be disdainfully or cynically humorous, or scornfully mocking. A form of wit or humour, being sardonic often involves expressing an uncomfortable truth in a clever and not necessarily malicious way, often with a degree of skepticism.
Throwing or dropping people from great heights has been used as a form of execution since ancient times. People executed in this way die from injuries caused by hitting the ground at high speed.
Oenanthe pimpinelloides is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae known by the common name corky-fruited water-dropwort. It is a plant of damp or dry grassland and more ruderal tall herb communities.
Oenanthe sarmentosa is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae known by the common name water parsley. It is native to western North America from Alaska to California, where it grows in wet areas, such as streambanks. It is sometimes aquatic, growing in the water. The plant has been used in cultivation in wetlands, and the recent discovery of several colonies growing by a stream in Illinois demonstrates its capacity to become a noxious weed if it is introduced elsewhere. This is a perennial herb growing to a maximum height near 1.5 meters. The leaves have blades up to 30 centimeters long borne on petioles up to 35 centimeters in length. The parsley-like leaf blade is divided into serrated, lobed leaflets. The inflorescence is a compound umbel of many flowers with bright white to red-tinged petals.
Oenanthe javanica, commonly Java waterdropwort, water celery, water dropwort, Chinese celery, Indian pennywort and Japanese parsley, is a plant of the genus Oenanthe originating from East Asia. It has a widespread native distribution in temperate Asia and tropical Asia, and is also native to Queensland, Australia.
Railway Stell West is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Sedgefield district of County Durham, England. The site consists of a length of ditch alongside the East Coast Main Line railway, 3 km east of the town of Newton Aycliffe.
Depressaria daucella is a moth of the family Depressariidae. It is found in most of Europe, except most of the Balkan Peninsula. It is also found in North America.
Epermenia chaerophyllella, also known as the garden lance-wing, is a moth of the family Epermeniidae first described by Johann August Ephraim Goeze in 1783. It is found in all of Europe and Asia Minor.
Dropwort is a common name for several plants and may refer to:
Oenanthe crocata, hemlock water-dropwort is a flowering plant in the carrot family, native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia. It grows in damp grassland and wet woodland, often along river and stream banks. All parts of the plant are extremely toxic and it has been known to cause human and livestock poisoning.
Oenanthe aquatica, fine-leaved water-dropwort, is an aquatic flowering plant in the carrot family. It is widely distributed from the Atlantic coast of Europe to central Asia.
Oenanthe fistulosa, tubular water-dropwort, is a flowering plant in the carrot family, native to Europe, North Africa and western parts of Asia. It is an uncommon plant of wetlands, growing around pools and along ditches, mainly in areas of high conservation value.
Oenanthe fluviatilis, the river water-dropwort, is a flowering plant in the carrot family, Apiaceae, which is endemic to north-west Europe. It grows only in clear, unpolluted rivers and is declining throughout its range.
Oenanthe lachenalii, parsley water-dropwort, is a flowering plant in the carrot family, which is native to Europe and parts of North Africa. It is a declining plant of coastal wetlands.
Oenanthe silaifolia, narrow-leaved water-dropwort, is a flowering plant in the carrot family, which is native to Europe and adjacent parts of Asia and North Africa. It is an uncommon plant of water-meadows and wetlands.
