This plant grows in saline or brackish water in tropical mangrove forests, in a distribution bounded to the west by India, to the north by Bangladesh, to the south by Australia.

The latex produced by E. agallocha contains a variety of phytotoxins, including the excoecariatoxins, which are powerful irritants to the skin, eyes and mucous membranes.

[13][14] Like many other species of aposematic scutellerids,[15][16] C. nobilis is able to sequester chemical compounds from its host plants that are toxic to their predators, and use them towards its own defenses.

These chemical compounds are concentrated and stored in a pair of scent glands located on the metathorax of the adults and nymphs.

When these insects are threatened or handled, they can secrete an irritating and toxic fluid from these glands as a deterrent to potential predators.

[7] Excoecaria agallocha has been found to have various medicinal and pharmacological benefits, including the treatment for epilepsy, ulcers, leprosy, rheumatism, and paralysis.