Any cattle or goats do not browse on Calotropis plant due to -

The correct answer is Option (3) → Cardiac glycosides

Plants cannot run away from the animals that eat them, so many make chemical defences. These chemicals make the herbivore sick, stop feeding or digestion, or even kill it.

(1) Cardiac glycolipids — Incorrect. Glycolipids are ordinary lipid–sugar molecules of cell membranes. NCERT names no such poison.

(2) Cardiac glycoproteins — Incorrect. Glycoproteins are protein–sugar molecules. They are not the poison of this plant.

(3) Cardiac glycosides — Correct. Calotropis makes highly poisonous cardiac glycosides. This is why cattle and goats do not browse on it.

(4) Cardiac glycogen — Incorrect. Glycogen is the stored carbohydrate of animals. It is not a poison.

Note: A similar question was also asked in CUET (UG) 2026 on 07-06-2026 (Slot 2).

NCERT Extract:
Population Interactions – “… Many plants produce and store chemicals that make the herbivore sick when they are eaten, inhibit feeding or digestion, disrupt its reproduction or even kill it. You must have seen the weed Calotropis growing in abandoned fields. The plant produces highly poisonous cardiac glycosides and that is why you never see any cattle or goats browsing on this plant.”