Acacia divergens
| Acacia divergens | |
|---|---|
| Near Pemberton | |
| 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. divergens
|
| Binomial name | |
| Acacia divergens | |
| Occurrence data from AVH | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
Acacia divergens is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is diffuse, open and spreading, spiny shrub with long, arching branches, Δ-shaped to triangular, sharply pointed phyllodes with the narrower end towards the base, spherical heads of cream-coloured to pale yellow flowers and linear, curved or twisted pods.
Description
Acacia divergens is a diffuse, open and spreading shrub that typically grows to a height of 0.4–2.5 m (1 ft 4 in – 8 ft 2 in) and has its end branches long, undivided and arching downwards. Its branchlets are finely yellow-ribbed and glabrous or with short, soft hairs. The phyllodes are Δ-shaped to triangular with the narrower end towards the base, with a prominent gland-bearing angle on the upper edge, 6–10 mm (0.24–0.39 in) long, 3–8 mm (0.12–0.31 in) wide and sharply pointed with a prominent midrib near the lower edge. There are often spiny, slender stipules 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) long at the base of the phyllodes. The flowers are borne in a single spherical head in axils on a slender peduncle 3.5–10 mm (0.14–0.39 in) long, the heads with five to ten cream-coloured to pale yellow flowers. Flowering mostly occurs from August to November, and the pods are linear, curved and often twisted, up to 70 mm (2.8 in) long, 2–3 mm (0.079–0.118 in) wide and thinly leathery to crust and glabrous. The seeds are more or less oblong, 2.5–30 mm (0.098–1.181 in) long and glossy brown with an aril.[2][3][4][5]
A. divergens is part of the A. biflora group with phyllodes closely resembling those of A. robiniae.[4]
Taxonomy
Acacia divergens was first formally described in 1842 by George Bentham in Hooker's London Journal of Botany from specimens collected near the Vasse River by Georgiana Molloy.[6][7] The specific epithet (divergens) means 'diverging' or 'different from', referring to the angle on the upper margin of the phyllode.[8]
Distribution and habitat
This species of wattle often grows near swamps and creeks, but also is jarrah forest and near Augusta in sand over limestone in coastal heath. It occurs in a discontinuous distribution from the Moora-Wongan Hills area to Augusta and Denmark areas and east to the Stirling Range[2] in the Avon Wheatbelt, Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest, Swan Coastal Plain and Warren bioregions of south-western Western Australia.[5]
Conservation status
Acacia divergensis listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.[5]
See also
References
- ^ a b "Acacia divergens". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
- ^ a b Maslin, Bruce R.; Kodela, Phillip G. "Acacia divergens". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
- ^ "Acacia divergens". Australian Biological Resources Study. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
- ^ a b "Acacia divergens". World Wide Wattle. CSIRO. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
- ^ a b c "Acacia divergens". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ "Acacia divergens". APNI. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
- ^ Bentham, George (1842). Hooker, William Jackson (ed.). "Notes on Mimoseae, with a synopsis of species". London Journal of Botany. 1: 331. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
- ^ George, Alex S.; Sharr, Francis A. (2023). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings - A Glossary (fifth ed.). Kardinya: Four Gables Press. p. 188. ISBN 9780645629538.