Acacia auronitens Lindl., Sketch Veg. Swan R . xv (1839)
Spreading, often procumbent, multistemmed subshrub 0.2–0.5 m high. Branchlets usually densely pubescent to hirsute. Stipules 2–4 mm long, slender, frequently spinose. Phyllodes ascending to erect, narrowly oblong, straight or shallowly recurved at apices, infrequently quadrangular and deeply sulcate between the nerves, 7–22 mm long, 1–4 mm wide, asymmetrically narrowed at base, with oblique, pungent apex, rigid, green, glabrous or hirsutellous on nerves, 4-nerved in all, 1-nerved per face when flat; pulvinus yellow, slightly dilated at base. Inflorescences simple, 1 per axil; peduncles 8–14 mm long, glabrous or hirsutellous; heads globular, 15–25-flowered, golden; bracteoles acuminate. Flowers 5-merous; sepals free; petals 1-nerved, sometimes sparingly penninerved. Pods narrowly oblong, to 45 mm long, 4–9 mm wide, thickly crustaceous to woody, glabrous or hirsutellous; margins broad, yellow. Seeds transverse, c. 3.7 mm long, turgid, mottled; aril oblique.
Occurs mainly in the Eneabba area but extends from near Perth to Mingenew, south-western W.A. Grows in deep sand or sand over laterite, in heath or shrubland.
Specimens with glabrous branchlets are uncommon (e.g. 23.2 km NNW of Mogumber , B.R.Maslin 5301 , MEL, MO, PERTH); the paralectotype represents this variant. Some specimens from near Eneabba have quadrangular phyllodes and can be confused with A. quadrisulcata or A. barbinervis subsp. borealis . Superficially similar to A. ridleyana and A. cavealis .
Type of accepted name
Swan R., [W.A.], 1839, J.Drummond s.n .; lecto: CGE; isolecto: K, fide B.R.Maslin, Nuytsia 12: 325 (1999); Swan R., [W.A.], Toward 41 ; paralecto: CGE.
Representative collections
W.A.: Midland Junction, 10 Jan. 1901, A.Morrison s.n . (P, PERTH); 5 km N of Cataby Roadhouse on Brand Hwy, B.R.Maslin 5482 (CANB, K, MEL, MO, PERTH); 11.4 km S of Mingenew on Geraldton Hwy, M.D.Tindale 1296 (K n.v. , NSW, 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.
