Giles' wattle
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Caesalpinioideae
Clade: Mimosoid clade
Genus: Acacia
Species:
A. gilesiana
Binomial name
Acacia gilesiana
Occurrence data from AVH

Acacia gilesiana, commonly known as Giles' wattle, is a shrub of the genus Acacia and the subgenus Plurinerves that is endemic to arid parts of southern Australia.

Description

The erect spreading shrub typically grows to a height of 1.5 to 3 metres (5 to 10 ft)[1] and has terete and glabrous slightly ribbed branchlets. Like most species of Acacia it has phyllodes rather than true leaves. The thick, pungent and rigid grey-green phyllodes are ascending to erect and straight to slightly curved with a length of 5 to 24 cm (2.0 to 9.4 in) and a diameter of 1.5 to 1.8 mm (0.059 to 0.071 in) and have eight immersed yellowish nerves.[2] It blooms from July to August and produces yellow flowers.[1]

Taxonomy

The specific epithet, gilesiana, honours William Ernest Powell Giles (explorer and botanical collector).[3]

Distribution

It is native to an area in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia,[1] and in South Australia in the Nullarbor region near Maralinga and the north-western region.[3] It is often situated on sand dunes or sandplains growing in red sandy soils.[1] The range of the species extends from the Gibson Desert in the north west and the Great Victoria Desert in the south west from around Neale Junction extending eastward to Maralinga in South Australia where it is found as a part of low open woodland and tall shrubland communities often in association with mulga and spinifex.[2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Acacia gilesiana". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  2. 1 2 "Acacia gilesiana F.Muell". Wattle - Acacias of Australia. Lucid Central. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Fact sheet for Acacia gilesiana". www.flora.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
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