Acacia atopa Pedley (ms), to be published in Appendix to Fl. Australia vol. 11 (2001)
Slender tree to 4.5 m tall, occasionally weeping. Branchlets slender, with white appressed hairs between brown resinous ribs. Phyllodes linear, terete, 6–12 cm long, 0.7–1 mm diam., striate with longitudinal resinous ribs, appressed pubescent between them. Inflorescences single in axils; peduncles 4–8 mm long; spikes c. 20 mm long, rather loose. Flowers 5-merous; calyx c. 0.7 mm long, with oblong lobes and a distinct tube 0.1–0.2 mm long, with a few hairs on lobes; corolla c. 1.2 mm long, with a few hairs on tips; stamens c. 2.5 mm long; ovary with dense appressed longish hairs. Pods linear, not stipitate, straight, square in transverse section, to 3.5 cm long, 4 mm wide, with narrow longitudinal wings 0.5 mm wide on angles, pale brown, upper and lower surfaces with coarse irregular longitudinal ribs and yellowish nerves between them, appressed-pubescent, dehiscent. Seeds longitudinal, narrowly obloid, to 8 mm long and 1.7 mm wide; aril not developed (absent?).
Restricted to a small area in the Gasgoyne R. basin in the vicinity of Gasgoyne Junction, W.A.; recorded from red clay and red clay-loam, sometimes in rocky situations. ‘Mulga’, Acacia ramulosa , Eremophila spp. and Senna spp are reported to be associated woody species.
The narrow geographic range of this species overlaps the ranges of A. ramulosa var. linophylla and A. subtessarogona . It possibly originated as a result of hybridism between the two taxa. Its phyllodes resemble those of A . ramulosa and its pods are structurally similar to those of A. subtessarogona although much smaller.
Type of accepted name
3 miles [c. 5 km] S of Winderie Stn, 15 Oct. 1973, J.S.Beard 6843 ; holo: PERTH; iso: NSW, PERTH.
Representative collections
W.A.: Gasgoyne R., Kennedy Ra., C.A.Gardner 6082 (PERTH); same locality, J.S.Beard 4489 (PERTH); Injinu Spring in Injinu Hills on Dalgety Downs Stn, G.Johnstone 1/84 (PERTH).
(LP)
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.
