Acacia armigera, commonly known as fierce wattle ,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to a restricted area of inland Western Australia. It is a dense, rounded shrub with rigid, sharply-pointed phyllodes that are pentagonal in cross section, spherical heads of bright yellow flowers, and pods that are round in cross section, and up to 40 mm (1.6 in) long.
| Fierce wattle | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Clade: | Mimosoid clade |
| Genus: | Acacia |
| Species: | A. armigera
|
| Binomial name | |
| Acacia armigera | |
Description
editAcacia armigera is a dense, rounded shrub that typically grows to a 0.8–1 m (2 ft 7 in – 3 ft 3 in) high and 1–2 m (3 ft 3 in – 6 ft 7 in) wide. Its phyllodes are pentagonal in cross section with equal faces and sharply-pointed, 13–34 mm (0.51–1.34 in) long and 1.0–1.2 mm (0.039–0.047 in) wide. The flowers are bright yellow and borne pairs in axils 10–24 mm (0.39–0.94 in) long on peduncles 4.5–7.5 mm (0.18–0.30 in) long, each head with 17 to 23 flowers. Flowering has been observed in late August and the pods are crusty, curved, round in cross section, 32–40 mm (1.3–1.6 in) long and 2.5–3.0 mm (0.098–0.118 in) wide.[3][4]
Taxonomy
editAcacia armigera was first formally described by the Robert Wayne Davis, Kevin R. Thiele and Geoff T.B. Cockerton in 2023 in the journal Nuytsia from specimens collected by Thiele and Cockerton near Mount Dimer, north of Southern Cross in 2021.[4][5] The specific epithet (armigera) means 'bearing thorns, or armed'.[4]
Distribution
editFierce wattle is only known from the type location near Mount Dimer where it grows in open woodland on red-brown clay in the Coolgardie bioregion of inland Western Australia.[4]
Conservation status
editThis Acacia species is classified as "Priority One" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife,[2] meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations which are potentially at risk.[6]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Acacia armigera". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ a b "Acacia armigera". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ Maslin, Bruce R.; Kodela, Phillip G. "Acacia armigera". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d Davis, Robert W.; Thiele, Kevin R.; Cockerton, Geoff T.B. (2023). "Acacia armigera (Fabaceae), a new, geographically restricted wattle from the Coolgardie bioregion of Western Australia" (PDF). Nuytsia. 34: 95–98. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Acacia armigera". APNI. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. Retrieved 28 November 2024.