Acacia pilligaensis Maiden, J. & Proc. Roy. Soc. New South Wales 53: 187 (1920)
Pinbush Wattle , Pilliga Wattle
Bushy, much-branched shrubs to 2 (– 4) m high. Branchlets glabrous to puberulous-hirsutellous, resinous and angled at extremities. Phyllodes frequently subcrowded, ascending to erect, infrequently patent, slender, straight to shallowly incurved, terete or more commonly subterete to flat, 20–45 mm long, 0.5–1 mm wide, obliquely and excentrically mucronulate, glabrous or subglabrous, nerveless or with 1 (central) or 2 obscure nerves on each face; gland basal, minute, sometimes absent, a similar gland sometimes adjacent to the mucro. Inflorescences simple, 1 per axil; peduncles 2–6 mm long, glabrous to puberulous-hirsutellous; heads globular, 20–34-flowered, bright golden, resinous when young. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united to near apex. Pods linear, to 7 cm long, 3–4 mm wide, firmly chartaceous to very thinly coriaceous, dark brown, glabrous, slightly resinous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong, 3.5–4 mm long; aril oblique.
Occurs in N.S.W from near the Qld border S to Goonoo State Forest; it is common in the Pilliga Scrub near Narrabri. J.H.Maiden loc.cit. considered a specimen from Home Rule, near Gulgong, c. 60 km SE of Goonoo State Forest as perhaps having incorrect locality details (i.e. J.L.Boorman , Sept. 1916, K, NSW). Grows in sand in dry sclerophyll forest, woodland and shrubland.
The N.S.W. and Qld specimens of uncertain affinity that were cited by J.H.Maiden in the protologue are regarded as A. pilligaensis and A. johnsonii respectively. These two species appear to be very closely related (both members of the ‘A. johnsonii group') with A. johnsonii being distinguished by its slightly broader phyllodes. Similar to A. burbidgeae which has subterete phyllodes with a discrete medial groove and a broad lower margin, and longer peduncles. Resembles narrow phyllode forms of A. wilhelmiana .
Type of accepted name
Ph. Cumbill, Co. Baradine, Oct. 1918, T.W.Taylor 79 ; syn: NSW 178717. Ph. Cumbill, Co. Baradine, 13 Dec. 1918, T.W.Taylor 79 ; syn: NSW178716.
Synonymy
[ Acacia burbidgeae auct. non Pedley: L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 250 (1980) p.p. , as to Gittins 1217 (BRI)]
Illustrations
M.Simmons, Acacias Australia 77 (1981); T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 118, fig. 121, pl. 121 (1992).
Representative collections
N.S.W.: Boyben, on the Gilgandra- Mendooran road, W.McReaddie AC39 (NSW); between the Gwydir and McIntyre Rivers, E.H.F.Swain 41 (NSW, PERTH); Sandy Ck, 75.5 km NE of Coonabarabran, T. & J.Whaite 3420 (NSW).
(BRM)
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.
