Sosnowsky's hogweed
Heracleum sosnowskyi
Its sap contains furanocoumarins, chemicals that strip human skin of its natural protection against ultraviolet light, resulting in severe sun-induced chemical burns.
- Scientific name
- Heracleum sosnowskyi
- Taxonomy
- Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Apiales › Apiaceae › Heracleum
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- increasing
- Biome
- grassland
- Habitat
- Disturbed soils, roadsides, abandoned agricultural fields, riverbanks, and forest edges
- Diet
- Autotrophic (Photosynthesis)
- Range
- Caucasus, Eastern Europe, Baltic States, Russia, Central Europe
- Size
- 3 to 5 meters tall, with leaves stretching up to 2 meters wide
- Lifespan
- 2 to 5 years (monocarpic perennial, dying after it seeds once)
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Eradication programs, mechanical mowing, and targeted chemical herbicides.
- Safe to approach?
- DANGEROUS. This plant contains phototoxic sap. Do not touch or approach closely. If skin contact occurs, immediately wash the area with cold water and soap, strictly shield the skin from sunlight for at least 48 hours, and seek medical attention if burns or blisters develop.
Sosnowsky's hogweed ( Heracleum sosnowskyi ) is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, originally native to Caucasus. Now it is a common weed in the Baltic States, Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, and Poland. The species is named in honor of the Russian botanist Dmitrii Ivanovich Sosnowsky (1885-1952), who found the species in Georgia in 1936.
Photo: Aurelijus Narbutas, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
Plain-text version: /species/bbc23dfe-8137-4ee0-93b7-38a1aaa56ff0.md