Acacia atkinsiana Maslin, Nuytsia 4: 75; 77, fig. 3 & 100, fig. 10 (1982)
Rounded or fundibular, resinous shrub, to 3.6 m high. Bark of 1–6 main stems fissured at base, smooth and grey above. Branchlets terete, glabrous. Phyllodes ascending, very narrowly elliptic to narrowly oblanceolate, flat, straight to subfalcate, 6–14.5 cm long, mostly 5–10 mm wide, coriaceous, rigid, with a brown, obtuse, knob-like apical callosity which is often slightly recurved, pale grey-green, glabrous, finely multistriate, with 1 or 3 nerves more prominent, nonanastomosing; basal gland indistinct, surrounded by slightly swollen lamina. Peduncles 8–15 mm long. Spikes 1 or 2 in axils, oblong, dense, c. 10 mm long, 8 mm wide. Flowers 5- or 6-merous; calyx dissected for 1/5, the lobes broadly triangular, resin-papillose; corolla glabrous. Pods broadly linear, slightly narrowed at apex, flat, slightly curved, to 10 cm long, 4–6 mm wide, cartilaginous to firmly chartaceous, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal to slightly oblique, dark brown, with yellowish halo surrounding pleurogram; areole less than 0.5 mm long; aril extending down 1/3 seed length.
Fortescue Botanical District, north-western W.A., from Mt Bruce, Hamersley Ra. NW to Yarraloola Stn. Grows in rocky loam on spinifex ( Triodia pungens , T. wiseana ) plains. Flowers May–Aug., Dec.–Mar. Fruits Sept.–Oct.
Acacia atkinsiana is closely allied to A. rhodophloia but differs in having obloid spikes c. 10 mm long and 8 mm wide, pods 4–6 mm wide and bark not ‘Minni Ritchi’.
Type of accepted name
1 km along South Fortescue Pipeline road (towards Mt Tom Price) from the Mt Bruce to Wittenoom road, W.A., 10 May 1980, M.Trudgen 2493; holo: PERTH; iso: CANB, K, NY.
Illustration
B.R.Maslin, op. cit. 77, fig. 3.
Representative collections
W.A.: 150 miles [240 km] S of Dampier, B.Maloney 73/53 (CANB, NSW, PERTH); 120 km from Wittenoom towards Roebourne, B.R.Maslin 2733 (AD, MEL, NSW, PERTH); 22.5 km S of Robe R. crossing on North West Coastal Hwy, B.R.Maslin 2761 (B, BM, G, NSW, P, PERTH).
(NSW)
The information presented here originally appeared on the WATTLE CD-ROM which was jointly published by the Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra, and the Department of Parks and Wildlife, Perth; it was produced by CSIRO Publishing from where it is available for purchase. The WATTLE custodians are thanked for allowing us to post this information here.
