Acacia awestoniana
| Stirling Range 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. awestoniana
|
| Binomial name | |
| Acacia awestoniana | |
| |
| Acacia awestoniana occurrence data from Australasian Virtual Herbarium[3] | |
Acacia awestoniana, commonly known as the Stirling Range wattle,[4] is a shrub of the family Fabaceae and is endemic to a restricted area around the Stirling Range National Park in Western Australia.
Description
[edit]Acacia awestoniana is a spreading viscid shrub or tree which typically grows to a height of 2.4 to 3 metres (8 to 10 ft) and to a width of around 4 m (13 ft). It blooms from September to November and produces yellow flowers.[5] The obliquely widely elliptic to elliptic phyllodes are 1.5 to 3 centimetres (1 to 1 in) long and 11 to 22 millimetres (0.4 to 0.9 in) wide. The simple inflorescences have globular flower heads with a diameter of 5 to 6 mm (0.20 to 0.24 in) containing 54 to 60 golden flowers. The seed pods that form later are straight to narrowly oblong. They have a length of around 2.2 cm (0.87 in) and a width of 3 to 5 mm (0.12 to 0.20 in) and contain glossy brown oblong-elliptic seeds.[6]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]It is native to a small area in the Great Southern region of Western Australia.[5] The plant is found on the lower slopes, on flats and along watercourses and grows in loamy or sandy clay loamy soils.[5]
A. awestoniana is confined to a small area with the Stirling Range National Park and fewer than 1,000 individual plants are known to exist.[7] It is usually found as a part of Eucalyptus woodland communities, associated species include Eucalyptus wandoo, Eucalyptus redacta and Acacia pulchella.[7]
Conservation
[edit]It is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 Threatened and Priority Flora list.[1][8] It is also listed as Declared Rare on the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation Declared Rare and Priority Flora List and as vulnerable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.[7][2]
The species occurs in a very restricted distribution, where its extent of occurrence and area of occupancy are not believed to exceed 12 km2. The major identified threats include increased bushfire frequency and grazing from quokkas and introduced rabbits. Due to the species only being known from a single location, these threats could potentially affect the entire population in a short period of time.[1]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c Plummer, J. (2021). "Acacia awestoniana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T172605836A176376513. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
- ^ a b KJ, Atkins (6 October 2008). "Declared Rare and Priority Flora List for Western Australia" (PDF). Department of Environment and Conservation. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
- ^ "DOI Details". doi.ala.org.au. doi:10.26197/5c0b1388984eb. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "Acacia awestoniana : Stirling Range Wattle". Atlas of Living Australia. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
- ^ a b c "Acacia awestoniana". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ "Acacia awestoniana". World Wide Wattle. Western Australian Herbarium. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
- ^ a b c "Acacia awestoniana — Stirling Range Wattle". Species Profile and Threats Database. Department of the Environment and Energy. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
- ^ "Threatened species and communities". Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. Retrieved 4 December 2024.