Acacia aristulata Maslin, Nuytsia 12: 320 (1999)
Shrub to 1 m high. Branches white-waxy, short-pilose to antrorsely pubescent. Stipules prominent, 2–3 mm long, acuminate, united at base, scarious, light brown. Phyllodes erect, obliquely narrowly oblong-oblanceolate to cuneate, 7–10 mm long, 2–3.5 mm wide, excentrically rostriform, uncinate, thin, green, glabrous to pubescent; midrib central; lateral nerves few and obscure. Inflorescences normally 1-headed racemes with axes <0.5 mm long; peduncles 10–20 mm long, slender, short-pilose to pubescent, recurved from base in fruit; heads globular, 5–6 mm diam., 13–17-flowered, creamy white; bracteoles long-acuminate, 2–3 mm long, exserted in buds. Flowers 5-merous; sepals 1/4–1/2 united; petals pubescent or sparsely hirsutellous. Pods moniliform, loosely once-coiled to irregularly twisted, to 6 cm long, 4–5 mm wide, coriaceous to thinly crustaceous, glabrous or sparsely hirsutellous. Seeds longitudinal, elliptic, 3.5–4 mm long, shiny, grey except for blackish areole and peripheral nerve, arillate.
Known only from Jingemia Hill and the vicinity of the type locality, c. 25 km S of Jingemia Hill, south-western W.A. Restricted to low, chert hills in loamy or clayey sand, in low open shrubland.
Similar in several respects to A. bidentata which is most readily distinguished by its obovate to obtriangular-obdeltate phyllodes, caducous or inconspicuous stipules and non-acuminate bracteoles. Superficially similar to A. rostellata which has often more or less pungent branchlets, obtriangular to obdeltate, more or less pungently mucronate phyllodes, shorter peduncles, smaller flower-heads lacking bracteoles and black, rugulose seeds.
Type of accepted name
14 km N of Moora, then 1 km E of Midlands Road, W.A., 1 Dec. 1986, B.R.Maslin 6122 ; holo: PERTH; iso: AD, CANB, G, K, MEL, NSW, NY.
Representative collections
W.A.: Jingemia Hill, Watheroo Natl Park, P.Hussey 81 (PERTH); 15 km N of Moora, D.J.E.Whibley 4882 (PERTH).
(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.
