''Acacia anastema'', commonly known as sandridge gidgee or just gidgee, is a
tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
. Endemic to
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
, it occurs within a fairly small area of semi-arid land east of
Carnarvon.
Sandridge Gidgee grows as an upright tree to seven metres high. Like most ''
Acacia
''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...
'' species, it has
phyllode
Phyllodes are modified petioles or leaf stems, which are leaf-like in appearance and function. In some plants, these become flattened and widened, while the leaf itself becomes reduced or vanishes altogether. Thus the phyllode comes to serve the ...
s rather than true leaves. These may be up to twenty centimetres long and five centimetres wide. The flowers are yellow, and held in cylindrical clusters between two and four centimetres long. The pods are slightly curved, up to 14 centimetres long and two to three centimetres wide.
Sandridge gidgee has limited utility. Its long straight limbs are resistant to
termite
Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattode ...
s, and so are locally used for fence posts. The tree provides no forage to animals as its canopy is typically out of reach of stock.
See also
*
List of ''Acacia'' species
References
*
*
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3296394
Fabales of Australia
Acacias of Western Australia
anastema
Taxa named by Bruce Maslin