Common Name

Nyalanyalara, Nyala nyala, Alumaru, Blue Wattle

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Disjunctly distributed from the ranges to the E of Warburton (e.g. Cavenagh and Blackstone Ra.), W.A., E to the NW margin of the Simpson Desert, N.T. and S to the Tomkinson and Musgrave Ra., S.A.

Description

Straggly or spindly multistemmed, glabrous shrub 1–4 m high. Branches and branchlets commonly pruinose. Phyllodes elliptic to oblanceolate, sometimes shallowly recurved, 6–13 cm long, 15–40 (–55) mm wide, narrowed to 5–7 mm long pulvinus, obtuse or retuse, thickly coriaceous; midrib and marginal nerves prominent; lateral nerves anastomosing to form a prominent reticulum; gland 1 or 2, lowermost near base. Racemes 2.5–5 cm long, occasionally longer, 6–14-headed, often pruinose; peduncles 2–5 mm long, stout; heads globular, 5–6 mm diam., densely 50–80-flowered, golden. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united almost to their apices. Pods narrowly oblong, ±straight or curved, to 12 cm long, 7–8 mm wide, firmly chartaceous to thinly coriaceous. Seeds longitudinal to slightly oblique, oblong to elliptic, (5–) 7.5–8 mm long, 3–5 mm wide; funicle 1/2 to completely encircling seed in a single or double fold, creamy yellow.

Habitat

Grows in rocky sand, clay and loam, sometimes along dry watercourses.

Specimens

W.A.: near Cavenagh Ra., A.S.George 8364 (PERTH). N.T.: NW Simpson Desert, P.K.Latz 4372 (AD). S.A.: c. 8 km W of Mt Davies, Tomkinson Ra., C.D.Boomsma 41A (AD, PERTH).

Notes

A member of the ‘A. microbotrya group’ most closely related to A. steedmanii.

Pods appear to be variable judging from the few specimens seen: at the E end of the range (near the NW margin of the Simpson Desert) pods are to 12 cm long, c. 8 mm wide, curved, enclosing seeds 7.5–8 ´ 5 mm; near the W.A./N.T. border (E of Warburton) pods are to 7 cm long, 7–8 mm wide, ±straight, with the seeds (slightly immature) 4–5 ´ c. 3 mm.

Specimens in W.A. from the Little Sandy Desert and the Pilbara region, W.A., described by B.R.Maslin, Fl. Australia 11A: 279 (2001) are now treated as A. steedmanii subsp. borealis.

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