Acacia castorum
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Acacia castorum | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Clade: | Mimosoid clade |
| Genus: | Acacia |
| Species: | A. castorum |
| Binomial name | |
| Acacia castorum | |
Acacia castorum, commonly known as Peak Range wattle,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the Gemini Mountains in central-eastern Queensland, Australia. It is a shrub with narrowly egg-shaped phyllodes with the narrower end towards the base, spherical heads of 20 to 25 flowers, and leathery pods up to 30 mm (1.2 in) long.
Acacia castorum is a shrub that typically grows to a height of up to 3 m (9.8 ft) and has few branchlets that are covered with hairs pressed against the surface. Its phyllodes are narrowly egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, 5–9 mm (0.20–0.35 in) long, 1.5–2.4 mm (0.059–0.094 in) wide with a small point near the end, and narrowly triangular stipules 0.4–1 mm (0.016–0.039 in) long at the base. The flowers are borne in axils in spherical heads on a peduncle 10–12 mm (0.39–0.47 in) long, each head with 20 to 25 flowers. The pods are leathery, up to about 30 mm (1.2 in) long and 8 mm (0.31 in) wide with a powdery white bloom containing up to 8 shiny black seeds 4.3–5.0 mm (0.17–0.20 in) long and 3.0–3.3 mm (0.12–0.13 in) wide with a club-shaped aril.[2][3]
Taxonomy
Acacia castorum was first formally described in 2019 by Leslie Pedley in the journal Austrobaileya from specimens collected on Mount Castor in the Peak Range National Park in 2001.[3][4] The specific epithet (castorum) alludes to the half twins Castor and Pollux, or the mountains named after them.[3]