Acacia pubirhachis Pedley, Contr. Queensland Herb . 15: 15; 20, fig. 2A & 27, fig. 9 (1974)
Shrub or tree, 3–7 m high. Bark splitting into layers, dark reddish brown. Branchlets angular, stout, dark brown to black, densely villous-pubescent. Phyllodes narrowly elliptic to linear (sometimes broadest above middle), straight to slightly curved, (3–) 5–12 cm long, 4–8 (–11.5) mm wide, usually acute, sparsely pubescent/silky when young, later subglabrous, with 1 or 2 prominent main nerves continuous to base, the minor nerves 4 or 5 per mm, parallel, not anastomosing or running into margins; gland 1, basal, to 1 mm above pulvinus. Spikes 2.5–6 cm long. Flowers 5-merous; calyx 0.5–0.6 mm long, dissected to 1/3, hairy along margins; corolla 1.3–1.6 mm long, dissected to 1/2, glabrous, conspicuously ribbed; ovary densely pubescent. Pods cultrate to oblong, straight-sided, 2–7 cm long, 7–10 mm wide, thinly coriaceous, with very sparse hairs when young, later glabrous; margins prominent, pale. Seeds transverse to slightly oblique, 5–5.5 mm long, brownish black; areole oblong, open.
Occurs in coastal north-eastern Qld near the mouth of the Tully R. and just N of Cooktown. Grows in white sand, usually in seasonally waterlogged dune swales or Melaleuca swamps, also occasionally an emergent in heath. Also occurs in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea where it is uncommon and grows in heavy clay soils in seasonally waterlogged swamps. Flowers July–Sept.
The features that distinguish Acacia pubirhachis from its close allies A. multistipulosa and A. conspersa are described by M.D.Tindale et al ., Austral. Syst. Bot . 9: 860 (1996).
Type of accepted name
‘Starcke’, c. 45 miles [72 km] NNW of Cooktown, Cook District, Qld, Nov. 1965, L.Pedley 1909 ; holo: BRI.
Synonymy
Racosperma pubirhachis (Pedley) Pedley, Austrobaileya 2: 354 (1987). Type: as for accepted name.
Illustrations
L.Pedley, op. cit. 27, fig. 9 (1974); M.D.Tindale et al ., op. cit. , 864, fig. 3.
Representative collections
Qld: c. 38 km NNW of Cooktown, J.Clarkson 3306 (BRI, NSW); 6.4 km beyond Hopeale Mission, P.Hind 1055 & C.K.Ingram (BRI, CANB, K, MEL, NSW, UC, US); 2 km from beach towards Starcke Stn, P.Hind 2300 (CANB, NSW).
(NSW)
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.
