WATTLE

Acacias of Australia

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Acacia gibbosa R.S.Cowan & Maslin

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Occurs from Koorda and Kellerberrin E to the Coolgardie area and near Dundas (c. 20 km due S of Norseman) and Leonora, inland south-western W.A.

Description

Shrub or tree 1-3 m high, dense, rounded. Branchlets glabrous. Phyllodes narrowly linear, straight to shallowly incurved, terete, compressed or flat, (3-) 4-10 cm long, normally 0.8-1.5 mm wide, acute to acuminate with recurved to subuncinate tip, green to grey-green, glabrous, 8-nerved in all, 3-nerved per face when phyllodes flat; nerves distant, plane, often brown-resinous, without anastomoses. Inflorescences simple, 2 per axil; peduncles 1.5-4 mm long, glabrous, with caducous basal bract abaxially gibbose at base; heads obloid to short-cylindrical, 6-8 mm long, 4-4.5 mm diam., 22-27-flowered, golden; bracteoles subpeltate with broadly oblate blade. Flowers 5-merous; sepals to 1/3-united. Pods linear, straight, to 6.5 cm long, 1.5-3 mm wide, firmly chartaceous, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, narrowly oblong-ovate, 2.8-3 mm long, glossy, black; aril crested, inequilateral.

Habitat

Grows mostly in loam in eucalypt woodland, scrub and shrubland.

Specimens

W.A.: Dundas, L.Diels 5844 (PERTH); c. 15 km N of Bruce Rock towards Merredin, B.R.Maslin 3417 (AD, CANB, K, MEL, P, PERTH); 10 km SW of Coolgardie, K.Newbey 5667 (CANB, PERTH)

Notes

Perhaps related to A. websteri which is readily distinguished by its consistently flat phyllodes 2–3.5 mm wide with raised nerves which are more or less the same colour as the inter-nerve tissue (not obviously brown as in A. gibbosa).

FOA Reference

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

Author

Minor edits by B.R.Maslin & J.Reid

R.S.Cowan, B.R.Maslin