Acacia baxteri, commonly known as Baxter's wattle, is a shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae, and is endemic to the south west of Western Australia.
| Baxter's wattle | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Clade: | Mimosoid clade |
| Genus: | Acacia |
| Species: | A. baxteri
|
| Binomial name | |
| Acacia baxteri | |
| |
| Acacia baxteri occurrence data from Australasian Virtual Herbarium[3] | |
Description
editThe compact and pungent shrub typically grows to a height of 0.2 to 1 metre (1 to 3 ft). It blooms from September to December and produces yellow flowers.[4] The shrub has rigid, striate-ribbed and glabrous branchlets. The thick rigid phyllodes are sessile, with a narrowly linear to oblong-elliptic shape and are around 10 to 25 millimetres (0.39 to 0.98 in) in length with a width of 1 to 4 mm (0.04 to 0.16 in). There is one simple inflorescence per axil with globular flower heads containing 30 to 50 flowers. After flowering curved woody red-brown seed pods form that are up to 6.5 millimetres (0.26 in) long and 3 to 5 mm (0.12 to 0.20 in). The grey-brown seeds have an oblong shape and are 5 to 6 mm (0.20 to 0.24 in) in length.
Taxonomy
editThe species was first formally described by the botanist George Bentham in 1842 in the work Notes on Mimoseae, with a synopsis of species. as published in London Journal of Botany.[1][2] There are two recognised synonyms for A. baxteri; Acacia bagsteri as described by George Bentham and Racosperma baxteri as described by Leslie Pedley.[5]
It is closely related to Acacia andrewsii and has phyllodes that are quite similar to Acacia unifissilis.[6]
The species epithet, baxteri, commemorates Bagster[2] (William Baxter).[7]
Distribution
editIt is native to an area in the Wheatbelt and the Great Southern regions of Western Australia.[4] The population is disjunct with most found between Ongerup and Albany with scattered populations found further north. The shrub is commonly found s part of Eucalyptus woodlands or open mallee heath communities.[6]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Acacia baxteri". Australian Plant Name Index, IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government.
- ^ a b c Bentham, G. in Hooker, W.J. (1842) Notes on Mimoseae, with a synopsis of species. London Journal of Botany 1:327
- ^ "DOI Details". doi.ala.org.au. doi:10.26197/5c0b1388984eb. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ a b "Acacia baxteri". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ "Acacia baxteri Benth". Atlas of Living Australia. Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- ^ a b "Acacia baxteri". World Wide Wattle. Western Australian Herbarium. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- ^ CHAH Biographical notes: Baxter, William (? - 1836)