Wolfsbane


 * EDITOR'S NOTE: Wolfsbane is poisonous to humans. The effects seen on Teen Wolf are fictional. Inhaling or ingesting wolfsbane in the real world could kill you.

Wolfsbane is one name for the genus Aconitum, a poisonous plant long used to kill predator animals in much of the world.

While the plant itself is real, it plays a large part in werewolf legends and mythology.

Teen Wolf Mythology
Wolfsbane was first seen in the Season 1 episode Second Chance at First Line.

Wolfsbane has, as a fictional construct, a number of important properties within the mythology of MTV's Teen Wolf.

Species
Blue or Purple Wolfsbane is the form most commonly seen on the show.

Only one species is referred to by name. In Magic Bullet, the species Kate Argent used was called "Nordic Blue Monkshood" or (Aconit Napel Bleu Nordique). This is based on a real flower called Northern Blue Monkshood (Aconitum Noveboracense.)

Yellow Wolfsbane was introduced in Season 4 and is described as very rare and very expensive. It was first seen in I. E. D. being reduced to liquid form and applied to a blade as a means of paralyzing a victim. A full flowering version of this species appears in Monstrous.

The yellow species is based on Aconitum anthora or "Yellow Monkshood."

Fictional Effects on Werewolves
Teen Wolf Executive Producer Jeff Davis says he thinks of the plant like the show's Kryptonite. The different species have different properties. The effects on werewolves and humans vary.

Poison
The flowers (all species) and derivatives are harmful to werewolves.


 * Examples
 * Scott suffered an asthma attack when Stiles secreted some of the plant in his backpack.
 * Derek comes close to death after he is shot with a wolfsbane-laced bullet.
 * Scott is incapacitated and unable to heal after Victoria Argent created a vapor of wolfsbane in a cannabis vaporizer.
 * Derek is rendered unconscious by a wolfsbane powder blown at him by Lydia.
 * A wolfsbane power blown into the air during a bus ride causes hallucinations and suicidal tendencies.
 * Garrett and Violet (The Orphans) used a yellow species to paralyze and attempt to kill Brett Talbot and Liam Dunbar.

Controls Shifts
The flower and its derivatives seem to force werewolves into their wolf form.


 * Examples
 * A spiral of wolfsbane studded rope, woven around her grave, seemed to hold Laura Hale in her full wolf form after death.
 * Derek’s wolfsbane bullet wound caused uncontrollable shifts from human to werewolf form at one point causing his claws to sink into the back of Jackson’s neck.
 * The presence of wolfsbane plant and vaporized wolfsbane caused Scott to transform.

Healing Properties
On a few occasions wolfsbane flowers or powder has been used to heal.
 * Examples
 * Wolfsbane laced gunpowder, once burned and applied to the wound, reversed the poisonous effects of a wolfsbane laced bullet.
 * Wolfsbane plants were growing in and around Peter Hale's grave before and during his resurrection.
 * Wolfsbane plants are apparently used to heal wounds inflicted by an Alpha "on the inside" after external wounds have healed completely.

Fictional Effects on Humans
The flower and its derivatives are poisonous to humans but not as poisonous as in the real world.


 * Examples
 * Scratches on the back of Jackson’s neck become infected. Dr. Conrad Fenris states he has Aconite Poisoning but prescribes only antibiotics to treat the infection.
 * Victoria Argent is able to spend several minutes in a room filling with wolfsbane vapors but suffers no obvious ill effects.
 * At Lydia's birthday party, guests who drink the wolfsbane-spiked punch have vivid hallucinations.

Wolfsbane Glow
The presence of some wolfsbane species creates a purple glow around objects and within wounds caused by wolfbane infused weapons or objects.


 * Examples
 * The Spiral around Laura Hale’s grave glows faintly when the wolfsbane studded rope is removed.
 * Derek’s wound glows after he is shot with a wolfsbane tipped bullet.
 * The scratches, inflicted by Derek, on the back of Jackson’s neck glow when the Alpha Werewolf examines them.

Real World Properties
Aconitum, all species, are real poisons. Ingesting and, in some cases, touching the leaves and flower can be deadly to humans.

For example - wolfsbane petals in fruit punch (as seen in Party Guessed) would likely kill a human within hours of ingesting.

As little as a tablespoon of the primary chemical in wolfsbane is enough to cause symptoms.


 * Example
 * If Victoria Argent had vaporized real wolfsbane in Raving, she would've likely died within a matter of minutes or hours depending on the dosage.
 * Anyone ingesting the punch in Party Guessed would be dead.

See Aconitum for more "real world" information about the effects of wolfsbane.