''Acacia veronica'', commonly known as Veronica's wattle,
[ is a shrub or tree of the genus '']Acacia
''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...
'' and the subgenus ''Plurinerves'' that is endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to a small area of south western Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
.
Description
The shrub or tree typically grows to a height of [ and has aromatic, ]glabrous
Glabrousness () is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes, or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of a plant or animal, or be due to loss because of a physical condition, ...
and finely ribbed branchlets resinous when still immature. Like most species of ''Acacia'' it has phyllode
Phyllodes are modified petiole (botany), 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 co ...
s rather than true leaves. The thinly leathery and evergreen phyllodes have a linear to linear-elliptic shape and are straight to slightly incurved with a length of and a width of and has two to three nerves per face with the central nerve being most prominent.[ It blooms from March to September and produces white-cream flowers.][ The ]inflorescence
In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...
s occur in pairs on raceme
A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, 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 ...
s with an axis length of and have spherical flower-heads with a diameter of containing 24 to 27 white to cream coloured flowers. The thinly leathery to papery seed pod
This page provides a glossary of plant morphology. Botanists and other biologists who study plant morphology use a number of different terms to classify and identify plant organs and parts that can be observed using no more than a handheld magnify ...
s that form after flowering have a linear shape with a length up to and a width of and contain shiny dark brown seeds with an oblong shape and a length of about with a white aril
An aril (), also called arillus, is a specialized outgrowth from a seed that partly or completely covers the seed. An arillode, or false aril, is sometimes distinguished: whereas an aril grows from the attachment point of the seed to the ova ...
.[
]
Taxonomy
The specie was first formally described by the botanist Bruce Maslin
Bruce Roger Maslin (born 3 May 1946) is an Australian botanist, known for his work on ''Acacia'' taxonomy.
Born in Bridgetown, Western Australia, Bridgetown, Western Australia, he obtained an honours degree in botany from the University of West ...
in 1989 as a part of the work ''Acacia veronica Maslin (Leguminosae: Mimosoideae), a new species of Acacia endemic in the Stirling Range, Western Australia'' as described in the journal ''Nuytsia
''Nuytsia floribunda'' is a hemiparasitic tree found in Western Australia. The species is known locally as moodjar and, more recently, the Christmas tree or Western Australian Christmas tree. The display of intensely bright flowers during the ...
''. In 2003 it was reclassified by Leslie Pedley
Leslie Pedley (19 May 1930 – 27 November 2018)IPNILeslie Pedley/ref> was an Australian botanist who specialised in the genus ''Acacia''. He is notable for bringing into use the generic name ''Racosperma'', creating a split in the genus, which r ...
as ''Racosperma veronicae'' then transferred back to genus ''Acacia'' in 2006.Acacia cyclops
''Acacia cyclops'', commonly known as coastal wattle, cyclops wattle, one-eyed wattle, red-eyed wattle, redwreath acacia, western coastal wattle, rooikrans, rooikrans acacia, is a coastal shrub or small tree in the family Fabaceae. Native to A ...
''.[
]
Distribution
It is native to an area in the Great Southern region of Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
where it is commonly situated in sheltered sites near summits and in gullies along creeks and streams.Stirling Range National Park
Stirling Range National Park is a national park in the Great Southern (Western Australia), Great Southern region of Western Australia, approximately south-east of Perth.
There is also an eponymous Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality, ...
as a part of ''Eucalyptus marginata
''Eucalyptus marginata'', commonly known as jarrah, in Noongar language and historically as Swan River mahogany, is a plant in the Myrtus, myrtle Family (biology), family, Myrtaceae and is endemism, endemic to the Southwest Australia, south-we ...
'' - ''Corymbia calophylla
''Corymbia calophylla'', commonly known as marri, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a tree or Mallee (habit), mallee with rough bark on part or all of the trunk, ...
'' or ''Eucalyptus wandoo
''Eucalyptus wandoo'', commonly known as wandoo, dooto, warrnt or wornt and sometimes as white gum, is a small to medium-sized tree that is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It has smooth bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower ...
'' woodlands or forest communities.
See also
* List of ''Acacia'' species
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15289326
veronica
Acacias of Western Australia
Taxa named by Bruce Maslin
Plants described in 1989