Acacia jennerae Maiden, in A.J.Ewart & O.B.Davies, Fl. N. Terr. 333, t. 26, figs N–S (1917)
Coonavittra Wattle
Shrub or tree 2–6 m high, often clonal. Bark red-brown to light brown. Branchlets glabrous. Phyllodes normally patent to inclined, narrowly elliptic to narrowly oblanceolate, straight, 5–11 cm long, 5–15 mm wide (lower ones sometimes 24 mm wide), short- or long-acuminate, thin, grey-green to glaucous, glabrous, with prominent midrib, finely penninerved; glands not prominent, (1–) 2–3, the lowermost normally 3–10 mm above pulvinus. Raceme axes 1–4 cm long, often flexuose, usually glabrous; peduncles 3–6 mm long, slender, with indumentum as on raceme axes; heads globular, 20–30-flowered, light golden; bracteoles normally golden-fimbriolate. Flowers 5-merous; sepals c. 5/6-united. Pods moniliform to submoniliform, to 15 cm long, 6–8 mm wide, thinly coriaceous to firmly chartaceous, dark brown to blackish, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong, 6–8 mm long, dull, black; funicle sometimes 3/4 encircling seed; aril clavate.
Sporadic in arid and semi-arid areas from near Kununoppin, W.A., through S.A. and N.T. to Wilcannia, N.S.W and the Simpson Desert in far SW Qld. Flowers Jan.-Aug., but mainly Mar.- July.
Acacia jennerae often has the habit of a small mallee eucalypt on account of its bushy, normally multistemmed habit and its bark and phyllode characters. Apart from its funicle (see below) the species is normally recognised by its glabrous raceme axes and peduncles and its rather spreading, straight, grey-green to glaucous phyllodes which commonly have 2 glands on their adaxial margins and which end in discrete, acuminate points. A few specimens are unusual in having relatively dense, pale yellow, appressed-puberulous raceme axes and peduncles or scarcely acuminate phyllodes or consistently uniglandulate phyllodes: their status needs to be reassessed.
Acacia jennerae is regarded as a member of the ‘ Acacia microbotrya group’ even though its funicle differs from most other members of the group. It is short and either extends to just below the seed in a single fold or 3/4 encircles the seed but then is not reflexed back upon itself as occurs in A. microbotrya .
In the past the species has commonly been confused with A. microbotrya ; their ranges overlap in the Burakin- Trayning area, W.A. Acacia jennerae is normally distinguished by its straighter phyllodes with more numerous glands (the lowermost 1–10 mm above the pulvinus) and its funicle. It is also related to A. brumalis (especially the oblanceolate phyllode variant of that species) and A. confluens . Also similar to A. chrysella (variant 2) . A taxon of uncertain rank but with affinities to A. jennerae is keyed and described separately in WATTLE as A. affin. jennerae .
Type of accepted name
At waterhole about 80 miles [129 km] NE of C 2 [Camp 2], N.T., 8 June 1911, G.F.Hill 295 ; holo: NSW; iso: K.
Illustrations
J.H. Maiden, loc. cit .; M.D.Tindale, Telopea 2: 120, fig. 3 (1980); T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 138, fig. 146, pl. 146 (1992); D.J.E.Whibley & D.E.Symon, Acacias S. Australia 2nd edn, 163 (1992).
Representative collections
W.A.: Mt Stevens, 10 km due NNE of Kununoppin, B.R.Maslin 4459 (PERTH); 32 km E of Southern Cross, P.G.Wilson 4043 (K, NSW, PERTH). N.T.: Nabberby Stn, P.K.Latz 5937 (PERTH). S.A.: Simpson Desert, R.W.Purdie 2823 (CANB). Qld: Simpson Desert, 110 km W of Birdsville, 13 Aug. 1999, P.Connelly s.n. (BRI). N.S.W.: 23.25 km S of Coonavittra Tank on Wilcannia- Cobar road, G.M.Cunningham 5401 (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.
