Acacia enervia Maiden & Blakely, J. Roy. Soc. W. Australia 13: 8; pl. 8, figs 12–19 (1928)
Dense, rounded or obconic shrub, rarely a small tree, 0.6–3 m high. Branchlets slightly angular, glabrous or tips appressed-puberulous, glabrescent. Phyllodes inclined to erect, flat and linear to narrowly oblanceolate or terete, straight, 2–8.5 cm long, 0.8–6 mm wide, with an acute to short-acuminate, slender, curved tip, glabrous or appressed-puberulous, glabrescent, with numerous closely parallel, very indistinct to distinct nerves; gland basal or absent. Inflorescences simple, 1–3 per axil; peduncles 2–9 mm long, sparsely puberulous, appressed-puberulous or glabrous; heads globular, 3–5 mm diam., 18–33-flowered, golden; bracteoles obovate to spathulate. Flowers 5-merous; sepals free, sometimes partly united but becoming free. Pods (submature) linear, constricted between seeds, straight or shallowly curved, to 8.5 cm long, 2–2.5 mm wide, thinly coriaceous, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, narrowly elliptic to oblong, 3–4 mm long, black; aril terminal, white.
Wide-ranging in south-western W.A. from near Jibberding (which is c. 50 km due NE of Dalwallinu) SE to near Lake Grace and Lake Magenta (c. 80 km due ENE of Ravensthorpe) E to near Clear Streak Well, c. 70 km ESE of Norseman.
Acacia enervia together with A. lineolata and A. inceana constitute the ‘A. enervia group’, fide R.S.Cowan & B.R.Maslin, Nuytsia 10: 229 (1995). The species comprises two subspecies.
Phyllodes terete to subterete, often with pustulate stomata; flower-heads 3-4 mm diam.
subsp. enervia
Phyllodes flat, linear to narrowly oblanceolate, stomata not pustulate; flower-heads 4-5 mm diam.
subsp. explicata
Acacia enervia Maiden & Blakely subsp. enervia
Phyllodes terete to subterete, 2–6 cm long, 0.8–2 mm wide; nerves obscure; stomata often micro-pustulate. Flower-heads 3–4 mm diam. Pods to 8.5 cm long. Seeds oblong.
Extending from Kununoppin (c. 60 km due NW of Merredin) E to near Coolgardie and S to Frank Hann Natl Park (located 30- 110 km ENE of Lake King) and near Clear Streak Well, c. 70 km ESE of Norseman in south-western W.A. Grows in sand, sandy loam or loam, usually in eucalypt open woodland or open scrub mallee.
Type of accepted name
Hines Hill, W.A., 2 Oct. (sphalm ‘Sept.’) 1923, M.Koch 2806 ; holo: NSW195719; iso: K, MEL, NSW, PERTH.
Representative collections
W.A.: 8 km N of Southern Cross towards Bullfinch, B.R.Maslin 3957 (CANB, K, MEL, NY, PERTH); 3.5 km N of Queen Victoria Rock on road to Coolgardie, B.R.Maslin 5406 (CANB, K, MEL, PERTH); 34 km SW of 90 Mile Tank, Frank Hann Natl Park, Norseman- Lake King road, K.Newbey 6506 (NY, PERTH); 8 km N of Clear Streak Well, c. 70 km ESE of Norseman, K.Newbey 7693 (PERTH).
Acacia enervia Maiden & Blakely subsp. explicata R.S.Cowan & Maslin, Nuytsia 10: 232 (1995)
Phyllodes linear to narrowly oblanceolate, flat, 2.5–8.5 cm long, 1–6 mm wide; nerves distinct. Flower-heads 4–5 mm diam. Pods to 7 cm long. Seeds narrowly elliptic or oblong-elliptic.
Occurs from between Jibberding and Whitewells HSs (c. 50- 70 km NE of Dalwallinu) S to near Lake Grace and E to Coolgardie, W.A.; common in the Coorow to Wongan Hills region. One collection, B.R.Maslin 5801 from 18 km east of the Norseman- Esperance road on Quast Rd about 27 km NNE of Salmon Gums (PERTH), is far SE of the main range of the subspecies and indicates a considerably wider distribution. Grows mostly in saline situations around salt marshes, flats and lakes; occasionally in rocky clay on hills.
This subspecies can be easily confused with A. lineolata subsp. lineolata when the two are sympatric, see R.S.Cowan & B.R.Maslin, Nuytsia 10: 231 (1995), for discussion.
Type of accepted name
19 km N of Wongan Hills near Kondut in broad saline ‘floodway’, W.A., 30 Sept. 1984, G.Craig 1608 ; holo: PERTH; iso: CANB, PERTH.
Representative collections
W.A.: 6.8 km from Coolgardie toward Southern Cross, E.M.Canning WA/68 2413 (NSW, PERTH); 12–14 km E of Lake Grace towards Newdegate, G.Craig 1512 (PERTH); Jibberding to Whitewells HSs, K.W.Dixon (PERTH00696250); 10 km E of Mollerin towards Beacon, B.R.Maslin 4140 (PERTH); 4 km from Coolgardie on road to Queen Victoria Rock, B.R.Maslin 5404 (AD, K, NSW, NY, PERTH).
(RSC)
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.
