Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Confined to the Fitzgerald R. Natl Park, SW of Ravensthorpe, south-western W.A.

Description

Dense shrub 0.3–1 m high. Branchlets finely striate-ribbed, puberulous or appressed-puberulous. Stipules linear-triangular, 1.5–4 mm long. Phyllodes verticillate, inclined to ascending, commonly shallowly incurved, pentagonal to compressed, 1–3 (-4) cm long, 0.8–1.5 (–2) mm wide, with oblique pungent apex, rather rigid, green, normally glabrous, 5‑nerved, deeply sulcate between nerves when dry. Inflorescences simple; peduncles 7–13 mm long, glabrous to puberulous; heads globular, 15–25-flowered, cream to pale yellow. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united. Pods ±terete, to 5 cm long, 2.5–3.5 mm wide, acuminate, thinly crustaceous-coriaceous, curved (especially upon dehiscence), red-brown, coarsely striate, minutely appressed-puberulous to ±glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong, 4–5 mm long, light greyish brown; aril terminal, conical.

Habitat

Grows on quartzite hills in heath or open shrubland.

Specimens

W.A.: West Mt Barren, R.Coveny 3312 et al. (NSW, PERTH); top of East Mt Barren, R.J.Cumming 1062 (PERTH); W side of Mt Maxwell, B.R.Maslin 3476 (PERTH).

Notes

Included by L.Pedley, Contr. Queensland Herb. 11: 11 (1972), as an atypical member of the ‘A. lycopodiifolia group’; but its closest affinities are with A. laricina (fide B.R.Maslin, Nuytsia 2: 101 (1976)). Sometimes confused with A. simulans.

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

Minor edits by J.Rogers