''Acacia ligulata'' is a species of ''

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 ...

'', a dense shrub widespread in all states of mainland

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 ...

.World Wide Wattle. Retrieved June 2012
/ref> It is not considered rare or endangered. Common names include sandhill wattle, umbrella bush, marpoo, dune wattle, small coobah,Cunningham, G. M., Mulham, W. E., Milthorpe, P. L., & Leigh, J. H. (1992). Plants of western New South Wales. Melbourne & Sydney, Australia: Inkata Press. p. 365. watarka, and wirra.Moore, P. (2005). A guide to plants of inland Australia. Sydney, Australia: New Holland Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd. p. 331. The genus ''Acacia'' is derived from the Greek ''akakia'', referring to sharp thorns.Allan, R., Woodgroup SA Inc. Retrieved June 2012
/ref> The shape of the phyllodes named the species ''ligulata'', meaning strap-like or with a small tongue in Latin.Simmons, M. H. (1988). Acacias of Australia, vol. 2. Ringwood, Australia: Penguin Books Australia Ltd. p. 166.

Description

''Acacia ligulata'' grows as an erect or spreading shrub, 2 to 4 meters tallHarden, G. J.. (2002). Flora of New South Wales.Vol.2. Sydney, Australia: University of New South Wale Press Ltd. p. 450. and 3 meters across,Rotherham, E. R., Briggs, B. G., Blaxell, D. F., & Carolin, R. C. (1975). Australian Flora in colour – Flowers and plants of New South Wales and southern Queensland. Sydney, Australia: A. H. & A. W. Reed Pty Ltd. p. 150. sometimes dome-shaped, often branching from the ground. The bark is often grooved at the base, but is otherwise smooth. Its branchlets are angular with yellowish ribs, often with hair.Tame, T. (1992). ''Acacias'' of southeast Australia. Kenthurst, Australia: Kangaroo Press Pty Ltd. p. 136. The

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, appearing like leaves, are light to blue green, usually linear-oblong, slightly curved, 3–10 cm long and 4-10mm wide, thick and hairless, and wrinkled during dry periods. They have a prominent yellowish mid-vein, lateral veins not apparent.The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust. PlantNET - The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia. Retrieved June 201

/ref> The tip of the phyllode is obtuse with
mucro
a small hard point,Greig, D. (2002). A photographic guide to wildflowers of outback Australia. Sydney, Australia: New Holland Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd. p. 71. pointing downward. Two to four glands are found below the center of the phyllode and near the mucro. Yellow to orange globular flower heads of 5-6mm diameter, singular or 2 to 5 in short axillary

racemes A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

, sit on sparsely pubescent peduncles 4-10mm long. Each flower head consists of about 20 minute flowers. The seed pods,

legumes A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock fo ...

, are light brown and curved, 5–10 cm long and 5-10mm wide, constricted between the seeds and breaking easily into one-seeded segments. The stalk of the seed pod is orange to red. The seeds appear black and oval shaped, up to 3.5x3.5mm in size, situated longitudinal within the seed pod.

Taxonomy

''A. ligulata'' belongs to the ''A. bivenosa'' group of 12 species. Previously considered a variety of ''A. salicina'', differing by its rigid branches, undivided crown, and seed pod characteristics.Baumer, M., (1983). EMASAR phase II. Notes on trees and shrubs in arid and semi-arid regions. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. p. 20. Earlier literature mentions ''A. williamsonii'' as a synonym,World Wide Wattle. Retrieved June 2012
/ref> other literature places the species in the family ''Mimosaceae''.

Distribution and habitat

''A. ligulata'' is one of the most widespread species of ''Acacia'' in Australia, common to central and southern Australia, mostly south of the

Tropic of Capricorn The Tropic of Capricorn (or the Southern Tropic) is the circle of latitude that contains the subsolar point at the December (or southern) solstice. It is thus the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead. It also reac ...

in arid areas.

Charles Sturt Charles Napier Sturt (28 April 1795 – 16 June 1869) was a British officer and explorer of Australia, and part of the European exploration of Australia. He led several expeditions into the interior of the continent, starting from Sydney and la ...

called the habitat ''‘stupendous and almost insurmountable sand-ridges of a fiery red’''.Keith, D. (2004). Ocean shores to desert dunes – The native vegetation of New South Wales and the ACT. Hurstville NSW: Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW). pp. 294-295. This area of north-west New South Wales, the Sand Plain Mulga Shrublands, supports an open cover of shrubs and tussock grasses. ''A. ligulata'' is found on sand dunes, on the fringes of salt lakes, on floodplains,Florabank. Retrieved June 2012
/ref> in mulga an
bluebush
communities, in woodlands, in mallee communities.

Ecology

''A. ligulata'' grows in dense shrub communities on sand dunes, otherwise singly scattered. Fast-growing, it stabilises sand dunes and regenerates quickly after disturbance, such as

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...

. It is known for potential weediness due to rapid regrowth. It is found in the hottest and driest climates of Australia with rainfall of less than 200mm and survives light frost. It is an

indicative A realis mood (abbreviated ) is a grammatical mood which is used principally to indicate that something is a statement of fact; in other words, to express what the speaker considers to be a known state of affairs, as in declarative sentences. Most ...

species in sand plain mulga shrublands and was used in an emissions

bioassay A bioassay is an analytical method to determine the concentration or potency of a substance by its effect on living animals or plants (''in vivo''), or on living cells or tissues(''in vitro''). A bioassay can be either quantal or quantitative, dir ...

at Olympic Dam.Read, J. L., Kovac, K-J., & Fatchen, T. J., (2002), ‘Biohyets’: A holistic method for demonstrating the extent and severity of environmental impacts. p. 7. Its roots are host to

witchetty grub The witchetty grub (also spelled witchety grub or witjuti grub) is a term used in Australia for the large, white, wood-eating larvae of several moths. In particular, it applies to the larvae of the cossid moth ''Endoxyla leucomochla'', which fee ...

and food for the larvae of the butterfly '' Nacaduba biocellata''.Government of South Australia, Department of Environment and Natural Resources. eFloraSA. Retrieved June 201

The phyllodes are eaten by

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

and often defoliated by

rabbits Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...

around the lower part of the plant.

Kangaroos Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

and livestock use the plants as shelter.

Herbivores A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpart ...

grazing on the seedlings can severely limit regeneration.Auld, T. D. (1995). The impact of herbivores on regeneration in four trees from arid Australia. The Rangeland Journal, 17(2), pp. 213-227.

Reproduction and dispersal

''A. ligulata'' flowers during May to November,Western Australian Herbarium (1998). FloraBase—the Western Australian Flora. Department of Environment and Conservation. Retrieved June 201

/ref> depending on the region, odd flowers occurring throughout the year. Seeds are produced between November and January. They have diaspores with fleshy appendages indicating dispersal by birds, including the red

wattlebird ''Anthochaera'' is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family. The species are endemic to Australia and include the little wattlebird, the red wattlebird, the western wattlebird, and the yellow wattlebird. A molecular phylogenetic study has shown ...

,Davidson, D. W. & Morton, S. R., (1984). Dispersal Adaptations of Some ''Acacia'' Species in the Australian Arid Zone. Ecology, 65(4). pp. 1038-1051. and

ants Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22,00 ...

(

myrmecochory Myrmecochory ( (sometimes myrmechory); from grc, μύρμηξ, mýrmēks ("ant") and ''khoreíā'' ("circular dance") is seed dispersal by ants, an ecologically significant ant–plant interaction with worldwide distribution. Most myrmeco ...

). Ants can transport the seeds up to 180m and disperse it within an area of 3000m² around their nest.Whitney, K. D., (2002). Dispersal for distance? ''Acacia ligulata'' seeds and meat ants ''Iridomyrmex viridiaeneu''. Austral Ecology, 27. pp. 589-595.

Uses

''A. ligulata'' is used as a hedge and windbreak, to stabilise sandy areas, for

revegetation Revegetation is the process of replanting and rebuilding the soil of disturbed land. This may be a natural process produced by plant colonization and succession, manmade rewilding projects, accelerated process designed to repair damage to a lan ...

and erosion control, also in areas with salinity or alkaline conditions. It can be grown from cuttings and has been used as emergency stock fodder.

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

have used the plant by mixing its ashes with the dried and powdered leaves of ''

Duboisia hopwoodii ''Duboisia hopwoodii'' is a shrub native to the arid interior region of Australia. Common names include pituri, pitchuri thornapple or pitcheri. Description The species has an erect habit, usually growing to between 1 and 3 metres in height, wit ...

'' to prepare a stimulant chewing mixture ( pituri) for trading. Gum produced by this species was used for consumption, and the seeds were roasted and ground to make damper. Leaves and bark were used for medicinal purposes, to treat colds, chest infections, and general illnesses.Palombo, E. W., & Semple, S. J., (2001). Antibacterial activity of traditional Australian medicinal plants. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 77, p. 153.

Gallery

Image:A ligulata habit Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW.jpg, ''A. ligulata''

habit A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

Sturt National Park The Sturt National Park is a protected national park that is located in the arid far north-western corner of New South Wales, in eastern Australia. The national park is situated approximately northwest of Sydney and the nearest town is , awa ...

near

Tibooburra Tibooburra (pronounced or ) is a town in the far northwest of New South Wales, Australia, located from the state capital, Sydney. It is most frequently visited by tourists on their way to Sturt National Park or on the way to or from Inn ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

(NSW) Image:A ligulata habit with person Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW.jpg, ''A. ligulata'' habit with person, Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW Image:A ligulata flowers Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW.jpg, ''A. ligulata'' flowers, Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW Image:A.ligulata phyllodes mucros.JPG, ''A. ligulata'' showing phyllodes with mucros, Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW Image:Acacia ligulata seed pod Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW.jpg, ''A. ligulata'' broken segment of seed pod, Sturt NP near Tibooburra NSW

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q978642 Fabales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of the Northern Territory Flora of Queensland Flora of South Australia Flora of Victoria (Australia) Acacias of Western Australia ligulata Taxa named by Allan Cunningham (botanist)