''Acacia heterochroa'' is a shrub belonging to the genus ''
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 ...
'' and the subgenus ''Phyllodineae'' that is
endemic to south western
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
.
Description
The
glabrous spreading shrub typically grows to a height of .
[ It has terete and ribbed branchlets that are dusted in a white powder. The new shoot tend to be a reddish colour with stipules that are easily detached. The grey-green ]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 have an elliptic to ovate or sometimes almost circular shape with a length of and a width of with a prominent midrib and marginal nerves.[ The simple inflorescences have large spherical flower-heads containing 5 to 12 loosely packed bright lemon yellow flowers. The linear to curved and erect seed pods that form after flowering have a length of up to and a width of . The purplish-red pods are thick and woody and dry to a black colour. The glossy brown seeds within the pods have an oblong shape and are in length.][
]
Taxonomy
The species was first formally described by the botanist Bruce Maslin in 1995 as part of the work ''Acacia Miscellany. Acacia myrtifolia (Leguminosae: Mimosoideae: section Phyllodineae) and its allies in Western Australia'' as published in the journal '' Nuytsia''. It was reclassified as ''Racosperma heterochroa'' in 2003 by Leslie Pedley then transferred back to the genus ''Acacia'' in 2006.subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
:
* ''Acacia heterochroa subsp. heterochroa''
* ''Acacia heterochroa subsp. robertii''
It belongs to the '' Acacia myrtifolia'' group.[
]
Distribution
It is native to an area along the south coast in the Goldfields-Esperance and Great Southern regions of Western Australia where it is found on hilltops and ridges growing in gravelly lateritic
Laterite is both a soil and a rock type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by ...
soils.[
]
See also
* List of ''Acacia'' species
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q9565292
heterochroa
Acacias of Western Australia
Plants described in 1995
Taxa named by Bruce Maslin