''Erythrina vespertilio'' is a tree native to north and north-east Australia. Its common names are grey corkwood, bat's wing coral tree, yulbah and the more ambiguous "bean tree (disambiguation), bean tree". In the Western Desert language it is also known as ''ininti''.

Description

The small tree has a straggly habit (botany), habit and typically grows to a height of . The trunk has a diameter of approximately . It has thorns on the trunk and branches with bark that is deeply furrowed and corky and creamy-grey in colour. That leaves are bifoliolate or trifoliolate and are long. The leaflets have a broad wedge-shape with three lobes, resembling a bat's open wings. The leaflets are long and wide. The species is deciduous in the dry season. The tree blooms between August and September producing scarlet to orange-red pea flowers that are long are found on terminal racemes in length. The flowers have a calyx (flower), calyx that is long and petals that are about long. There are usually ten stamens. Flowering usually occurs when the tree is leafless. The seeds resemble beans and are orange to dark yellow in colour with a length of about found in pods that are long and wide.

Distribution

''E. vespertilio'' is found on all mainland states except Victoria, mainly in open woodlands but extends to arid areas and rainforest margins. It is found in the Kimberley (Western Australia), Kimberley, Pilbara and northern Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia. throughout most of the Northern Territory and Queensland, northern South Australia and north eastern New South Wales. It found in an altitudinal range from near sea level to . It grows in a wide range of soils as long as drainage is good and it has a position in full sun.

Classification

The species was first formally described by the botanist George Bentham in 1848 as part of Thomas Mitchell (explorer), Thomas Mitchell's work ''Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia''. There are two synonyms ''Corallodendron vespertilio'' and ''Erythrina biloba'', and the name of this species is often misapplied to ''Erythrina numerosa''. There are two known subspecies: * ''Erythrina vespertilio'' subsp. ''biloba'' F.Muell. & A.R.Bean * ''Erythrina vespertilio'' subsp. ''vespertilio''

Uses

It was widely traditionally used by Aboriginal Australians in Central Australia for making woomera (spear-thrower), woomeras and coolamon (vessel), coolamons. The Warlpiri people, Warlpiri, among others, would use the wood to make shields, used either for warfare or ceremonially. These shields could then be used for making fire with the friction method. The bark is also considered to have traditional Herbalism, medicinal uses. The fruit contains alkaloids and the stem contains isoflavonoids. Phaseollidin (a flavonoid) showed cytotoxic activities ''in vitro'' against prostate cancer cell lines at high doses.Iranshahi M., Vu H., Pham N., Zencak D., Forster P., Quinn R.J.,"Cytotoxic evaluation of alkaloids and isoflavonoids from the Australian tree erythrina vespertilio". ''Planta Medica''. 78 (7) (pp 730-736), 2012. The seeds are used to make decorations.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5396436 Erythrina, vespertilio Flora of Queensland Flora of the Northern Territory Rosids of Western Australia Flora of South Australia Flora of New South Wales Australian Aboriginal bushcraft Fabales of Australia Bush medicine Medicinal plants of Australia Trees of Australia Drought-tolerant trees Plants described in 1848