Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Occurs in north-western W.A. and northern N.T.

Description

Shrub to 1.5 m high, erect to ascending, resinous. Bark finely fissured. Branchlets ±terete, with minutely crenulated resinous ridges, markedly angular towards apices, glabrous, sometimes mealy. Phyllodes in clusters of 2–6, linear to filiform, straight or slightly curved, semi-terete, (4.5–) 7–13 (–18) mm long, 0.2–0.5 mm wide, with acute to ±aristate apex, glabrous; nerves inconspicuous. Inflorescences simple, 1 or 2 per axil; peduncles (5–) 10–15 (–18) mm long; heads globular, 4–6.5 mm diam., 34–38-flowered. Flowers 5-merous; calyx 0.6–1 mm long, dissected by 1/2–3/4, glabrous; sepal apices ±subulate or acuminate; corolla 1.3–1.8 mm long, dissected to 1/2 or more; petals with midrib only; ovary glabrous, usually with bulbous yellow cap. Pods mostly very narrowly oblanceolate, basally tapered, straight-sided, flat, 2–4.4 cm long, 3–4 mm wide, woody, glabrous, obliquely to longitudinally nerved, opening elastically from a hooked apex. Seeds oblique, brown; pleurogram with pale halo; areole open; funicle-aril conical.

Phenology

Flowers Jan., Mar., Apr. & July.

Habitat

Grows usually in shrubland or open eucalypt savannah on rocky or stony plateaux and hill slopes.

Specimens

W.A.: 50 m E of turnoff to Pentecost Downs (Karunjie), Gibb River Rd, D.Keith & B.Pellow 225 (CANB, NSW). N.T.: 13 miles [21 km] E of El Sharana Mine, M.Lazarides 7971 (CANB, NSW, PERTH); near East Alligator R. Ranger Stn, Kakadu Natl Park, J.Russell-Smith 936 (CANB, DNA, PERTH).

Notes

A member of the ‘Acacia stigmatophylla group’ most nearly related to A. subternata, which differs in its slightly broader phyllodes 0.4–0.8 mm wide, heads 5–8.5 mm diam., ±spathulate sepals with broadly rounded apices, and mostly longer longitudinally striated petals. Also related to A. manipularis which differs in having longer phyllodes to 23 mm long and less angular branchlets without prominent resin-crenulated ridges.

FOA Reference

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

Author

P.G.Kodela, M.D.Tindale

Minor edits by J.Rogers