You and Yew

You and Yew

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
You need to remember what Fish and game officials across the Northwest have told you about the Japanese yew. They are extremely toxic. Here's Fish and Game official Greg Losinski : "Japanese Yew is an attractive exotic ground covering shrub that has been around for decades.  Planted to decorate gardens in town, its rich green foliage and red berries perk up an otherwise monotonous winter moonscape.  As people have started to live further and further from town, surviving by telecommuting over the Internet, they brought their urban landscaping practices with them.  Unfortunately, when big game or livestock are involved, just a handful of Japanese Yew can be fatal.  So toxic, it's able to quickly kill something as large as an adult moose."

But apparently not everybody was listening to Sportsman's Spotlight that day. Yew, the toxic landscaping plant, has killed about a half-dozen elk in Idaho, Idaho Fish and Game says.

The plant that killed the elk has been identified and removed. It was a long-standing plant but the new homeowners were unaware of its toxicity to wildlife. With mild winters, it is theorized that a late hunt to deal with the damage elk have done to private property has pushed some animals closer to town.?

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