Acacia ancistrophylla


Acacia ancistrophylla is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to southern Australia. It is a dense, rounded shrub, with lance-shaped phyllodes with the narrower end towards the base, spherical heads of yellow flowers, and linear pods up to long.

Description

Acacia ancistrophylla is a dense, rounded shrub that typically grows up to high and wide and has grey bark and glabrous or sparsely hairy branchlets. The phyllodes are lance-shaped or narrowly lance-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long, wide and leathery, with many closely parallel veins. The flowers are arranged in 2 spherical heads in axils, in diameter, on peduncles long. Each head has 11 to 23 mid- to dark-golden yellow flowers. Flowering time depends on subspecies, and the pods are linear, up to long and wide and papery to thinly leathery. The seeds are dull tan or dark brown long and wide.

Taxonomy

Acacia ancistrophylla was first formally described in 1904 by the botanist Cecil Andrews in the Journal of the West Australian Natural History Society from specimens he collected near Dundas in 1903. The specific epithet means 'leaves barbed with small hooks'.
In 1995, Richard Sumner Cowan and Bruce Maslin described 3 varieties of A. ancistrophylla and the names are accepted by the Australian Plant Census:Acacia ancistrophylla C.R.P.Andrews var. ancistrophylla, flowers in August and September.Acacia ancistrophylla var. lissophylla R.S.Cowan & Maslin flowers from August to October.Acacia ancistrophylla var. perarcuata R.S.Cowan & Maslin flowers in August and September.
Cowan and Maslin described the differences among the three varieties as "subtle and difficult to express".

Distribution

Variety ancistrophylla is common to very common in woodland and mallee communities on flats, hillsides and ridges between Wubin, Newdegate and Cundeelee and near Salmon Gums. Variety lissophylla is known from three collections in Western Australia, in scattered locations from Ceduna to Pine Point in South Australia, and in scattered places between Lake Hindmarsh and Swan Hill in Victoria. Variety perarcuata grows in low woodland within a radius of of Merredin in Western Australia.

Conservation status

Acacia ancistrophylla var. ancistrophylla is also listed as "not threatened", but var. lissophylla is listed as "Priority Two", meaning that is poorly known and from one or a few locations, and var. perarcuata as "Priority Three" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. Variety lissophylla is listed as "endangered" under the Victorian Government Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act.