Common Name

Table-top Wattle

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Occurs principally in NW Qld, especially in Mount Isa area, and adjacent N.T. but with outlying populations in northern W.A. on and near Tableland Stn.

Description

Resinous, viscid shrub 0.4–2 m tall, spreading and flat-topped. Branchlets terete, glabrous or lines of appressed hairs ±embedded in resin. Stipules persistent, 1–1.5 mm long. Phyllodes narrowly elliptic to oblong-elliptic, straight, 2–5.5 cm long, (3–) 4–12 (–17) mm wide, acute to rounded-obtuse, ±abruptly narrowed to a pungent or semi-pungent point, thin-coriaceous, glabrous, with 3 distant raised main nerves and numerous closely parallel secondary nerves occasionally anastomosing. Inflorescences simple, 1 per axil; peduncles 8–28 mm long, puberulous to glabrous; heads globular, ±7–8 mm diam., mostly 45–60-flowered, golden. Flowers 5‑merous; sepals 1/3–2/3-united; petals finely striate. Pods linear, raised over seeds, strongly curved to once-coiled, to 6 cm long, 4–7 mm wide, coriaceous, obliquely reticulate-nerved, glabrous. Seeds ±transverse, broadly elliptic to nearly circular, 3.8–4.3 mm long, glossy black; pleurogram closed; funicle-aril fleshy, in two large loops over apex of seed.

Habitat

Grows on shallow stony and sandy soils or deep lateritic soil in low open woodland or with Triodia spp.

Specimens

W.A.: 8 km W of Tableland Stn, Kimberley, M.Lazarides 5126 (CANB, PERTH). N.T.: c. 10 km NNW of Bauhinia Downs Stn, G.Leach 594 (DNA, PERTH); 1.5 km W of Tin Hole Ck Crossing, J.Maconochie 2021 (BRI, CANB, DNA, NSW, PERTH). Qld: 53 km E of Mount Isa, J.R.Maconochie 1649 (DNA, PERTH).

Notes

Similar but probably not closely related to A. monticola which has ‘Minni Ritchi’ bark and mostly smaller, elliptic to obovate, apiculate, puberulous phyllodes with many secondary nerves in a regular reticulum. These two species putatively hybridize in the Burke District, Qld.

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

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