Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Widespread from Fitzroy Crossing and King Leopold Ra. (c. 130 km NNW of Fitzroy Crossing) in the Kimberley area, W.A., across the N.T. to Mount Isa, Qld, with outliers near Pine Creek (c. 190 km SE of Darwin) and Reynolds Ra. (c. 150 km NNW of Alice Springs), N.T., and Torrens Creek., Qld.

Description

Stipules ovate, rounded basally, 2–3 mm long, 1.5–2 mm wide, densely tomentose. Phyllodes broadly elliptic to subrotund, (3.5–) 4–5 (–6.5) cm long, (28–) 35–45 (–60) mm wide, retuse and mucronulate, densely tomentose, rarely glabrous and lucid. Peduncles (10–) 20–30 (–32) mm long, tomentose; bracteoles conspicuously exserted in young buds, with lamina thick and fleshy, glabrous or sparsely puberulous. Pods often obtuse-apiculate, flat, raised over seeds, 2.5–4 cm long, 12–16 mm wide, ±coriaceous, with one margin curved, densely tomentose.

Habitat

Grows in shallow sandy soil in rocky ground, in low open woodland and tall open shrubland, often associated with Eucalyptus brevifolia and Triodia.

Specimens

W.A.: between new Halls Creek and Carolyn Pool on side of Duncan Hwy, K.F.Kenneally 7228 (CANB, K, MEL, PERTH). N.T.: 19.3 km S of Renner Springs, N.Forde 27 (PERTH). Qld: Mount Isa, P.E.Conrick 1507 (PERTH); 96.5 km ESE of Camooweal Township, R.A.Perry 762 (PERTH).

Notes

This subspecies is normally characterised by its dense, conspicuous indumentum on the phyllodes, but a glabrous variant has been recorded in a few localities in Qld (e.g. c. 96 km ESE of Camooweal Township, Perry 762, CANB n.v., PERTH) and N.T. (e.g. between Frewena and Qld border, A.S.Cudmore s.n., DNA28590). According to L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 207 (1978), the glabrous variant in Qld occurs between Camooweal and Mount Isa and is sympatric with the normal form.

Of the several characters distinguishing this subspecies from subsp. clandestina, the most obvious are the nature of its bracteoles, the shape and indumentum of its phyllodes, and the shape and size of its stipules.

FOA Reference

Data derived from Flora of Australia Volumes 11A (2001), 11B (2001) and 12 (1998), products of ABRS, ©Commonwealth of Australia

Author

R.S.Cowan, B.R.Maslin