WATTLE

Acacias of Australia

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Acacia alata var. platyptera (Lindl.) Meisn.

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Restricted to near Mogumber (c. 100 km N of Perth), W.A.

Description

Shrub 0.5–1 m high, forming dense clumps to c. 1 m across. Stipules innocuous. Phyllodes 7–20 mm wide or occasionally 40 mm wide towards base of stems, narrower on inflorescence-bearing region; free portion of phyllodes straight to shallowly recurved, 10–70 mm long, longest at base of stems, acuminate to caudate-acuminate, with innocuous or somewhat spinose and frequently recurved apex; glands 1. Peduncles hirsutellous; heads 12–15-flowered, golden; buds obtuse.

Specimens

W.A.: N of Mogumber, C.Chapman 6 (PERTH).

Notes

The Mingenew variant of var. biglandulosa sometimes has phyllodes resembling those of var. platyptera.

Vegetatively var. platyptera is rather similar to some forms of var. tetrantha; both varieties occur in regions north of Perth but they are not sympatric. Variety platyptera is readily distinguished from var. tetrantha by its golden, 12–15-flowered heads.

A distinctive variant from the Tutanning Flora Reserve east of Pingelly (c. 200 km SE of Mogumber), which is not included in the above description, probably represents an undescribed taxon. It is similar to var. platyptera but differs in its very narrow (2–8 mm wide) glabrous or minutely hirsutellous phylloclades, shorter phyllodes (the free portions being 1–4 cm long), and glabrous, narrower pods (6–7 mm wide), cf. B.R.Maslin 6759 (PERTH).

FOA Reference

Data derived from Flora of Australia Volumes 11A (2001), 11B (2001) and 12 (1998), products of ABRS, ©Commonwealth of Australia

Author

B.R.Maslin