OLogy Cards > passionflower

In the forests of Central and South America grows the vibrant passionflower with deep red flowers and juicy yellow fruit. But its leaves are what really set it apart. Large and pointed, they hold chemicals that form a toxic compound called cyanide. When animals chew the leaves, the cyanide is released, killing the animal. But insects like the caterpillars of the zebra longing butterfly have evolved the ability to eat these toxic leaves.