Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Known only from the Wongan Hills–Piawaning area, c. 120 km NNE of Perth, south-western W.A.

Description

Densely branched glabrous shrub 0.6–1.6 m high. Branchlets ribbed, sometimes slightly glaucous. Phyllodes erect, narrowly linear, sometimes linear-oblanceolate, often abruptly incurved at gland, compressed to flat, 2.5–4 cm long, 2–3 (–4) mm wide, obtuse or acute, obscurely mucronulate, thick, rigid, subglaucous, with 6 raised nerves in all, 2-nerved per face; gland distinct, 8–30 mm above pulvinus. Inflorescences simple, 2 per axil; peduncles 3–8 mm long; basal bract caducous, cucullate, c. 2 mm long; heads globular, 3.5–4 mm diam., 6–16-flowered, golden; bracteoles oblanceolate. Flowers 5-merous; sepals free. Pods linear, ±constricted between seeds, straight to shallowly curved, to 22 mm long, 3 mm wide, thin-crustaceous, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, narrow elliptic, 2.5 mm long, shiny, tan; aril clavate, extending along one side.

Habitat

Grows in sand in heath with Melaleuca uncinata.

Specimens

W.A.: between Wongan Hills and Elphin siding, I.B.Armitage 398 (PERTH); 18.5 km NW of Wongan Hills towards Piawaning, R.Coveny 7846 & B.R.Maslin (CANB n.v., K n.v., NSW, PERTH, US n.v.); 4.8 km N of Yerecoin, J.W.Green 1488 (PERTH); Fowlers Gully, Wongan Hills, B.R.Maslin 3806 (CANB, K, NSW, PERTH).

Notes

A member of the ‘A. sulcata group’, perhaps most closely related to the more southerly distributed A. nitidula. Similar superficially in its phyllodes to A. gonophylla.

FOA Reference

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

Author

R.S.Cowan