Elephant ear wattle | |
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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. dunnii |
Binomial name | |
Acacia dunnii | |
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Occurrence data from AVH | |
Synonyms [1] | |
Acacia sericata var. dunnii Maiden Contents |
Acacia dunnii, commonly known as elephant ear wattle [3] or Dunn's wattle, [4] is a shrub or tree of the genus Acacia and the subgenus Plurinerves.
Its specific epithet, dunnii, is to honour Edward Dunn, government geologist for Victoria (1904–1912). [5] Aboriginal names for it are: (in) Jaminjung, Ngaliwurru, Nungali: Bawaya (Jam, Ngal); (in) Ngarinyman: Barrawi. [3]
This small shrub or tree flowers and fruits in all months of the year. [3] The erect, slender shrub or tree typically grows to a height of 1.5 to 6 metres (5 to 20 ft) [6] and a width of 2 to 4 metres (7 to 13 ft). [7] It blooms from January to June and produces yellow flowers. [6] A. dunnii generally has only a single stem. The silvery blue phyllodes are 20 to 45 centimetres (8 to 18 in) long and 6 to 16 cm (2 to 6 in) wide and hang vertically from branches. [7] It has terminal inflorescences with an axis that is 21 to 27 cm (8 to 11 in) long. The yellow flower Heads are globular with a diameter of 8 to 15 millimetres (0.3 to 0.6 in). [3] After flowering brown woody seed pods form. The pods have a flat linear to oblong shape and can be slightly curved with a length of 6 to 14.5 cm (2 to 6 in) and a width of 2.4 to 3 cm (0.9 to 1.2 in). [3]
The species was formally described by the botanist William Bertram Turrill in 1922 in the work Dunn's Wattle as published in the Bulletin of Miscellaneous Information. Synonyms for the plant include Racosperma dunnii as described by Leslie Pedley and Acacia sericata var. dunnii by Joseph Maiden. [4]
It is native to an area in the Northern Territory and the Kimberley region of Western Australia. [6] Despite records for Queensland, [8] the Commonwealth Heads of Australian Herbaria consider A dunnii not to be native to Queensland, but to have become naturalised. [9] It grows on shallow skeletal sandy soils, over sandstone or quartzite [3] [5] Often found on ridges, stony hills and amongst rocks and rocky outcrops. [6]
Acacia pycnantha, most commonly known as the golden wattle, is a tree of the family Fabaceae. It grows to a height of 8 metres and has phyllodes instead of true leaves. The profuse fragrant, golden flowers appear in late winter and spring, followed by long seed pods. Explorer Thomas Mitchell collected the type specimen, from which George Bentham wrote the species description in 1842. The species is native to southeastern Australia as an understorey plant in eucalyptus forest. Plants are cross-pollinated by several species of honeyeater and thornbill, which visit nectaries on the phyllodes and brush against flowers, transferring pollen between them.
Acacia colei is a perennial bush or tree native to northern Australia. A common name for it is Cole's wattle. It grows to 2 to 4 metres tall and has yellow flowers.
Acacia cuthbertsonii is a perennial shrub or tree native to arid parts of inland and northwestern Australia.
Acacia longifolia is a species of Acacia native to southeastern Australia, from the extreme southeast of Queensland, eastern New South Wales, eastern and southern Victoria, southeastern South Australia, and Tasmania. Common names for it include long-leaved wattle, acacia trinervis, aroma doble, golden wattle, coast wattle, sallow wattle and Sydney golden wattle. It is not listed as being a threatened species, and is considered invasive in Portugal, New Zealand and South Africa. In the southern region of Western Australia, it has become naturalised and has been classed as a weed due to its out-competing indigenous species. It is a tree that grows very quickly, reaching 7–10 m in five to six years.
Acacia cognata, commonly known as bower wattle, river wattle or narrow-leaved bower wattle, is a tree or shrub species that is endemic to south eastern Australia.
Acacia caesiella, commonly known as tableland wattle, bluebush wattle or blue bush, is a shrub or small tree that is endemic to eastern Australia.
Acacia hilliana, commonly known as Hill's tabletop wattle but also known as sandhill wattle and Hilltop wattle, is a shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Juliflorae. It is native to northern Australia.
Acacia jibberdingensis, also known as Jibberding wattle or willow-leafed wattle, is a shrub or tree belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Juliflorae that is endemic to Western Australia.
Acacia ramulosa, commonly known as horse mulga or bowgada wattle, is a shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Juliflorae endemic to arid areas of Australia.
Acacia rhodophloia, commonly known as minni ritchi or western red mulga, is a tree or shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Juliflorae that is endemic to a large area of arid central western Australia. The Indigenous group the Kurrama peoples know the plant as mantaru.
Acacia sibirica, commonly known as bastard mulga or false witchetty bush, is a tree or shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Juliflorae. It is native to arid areas of Australia.
Acacia dictyophleba, also known as the sandhill wattle, waxy wattle, feather veined wattle, and spear tree, is a shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae, found in Australia. The Nyangumarta peoples know the plant as Langkur or Lungkun; the Thalanyji know it as Jabandi; and the Pintupi know it as mulyati.
Acacia jasperensis is a shrub or tree belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae that is endemic to north western Australia.
Acacia microbotrya, commonly known as manna wattle or gum wattle, is a shrub or tree belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae that is native to Western Australia.
Acacia oswaldii, commonly known as boree, umbrella wattle, umbrella bush, whyacka, middia, miljee, nelia and curly yarran, is a shrub or tree of the genus Acacia and the subgenus Plurinerves.
Acacia macdonnelliensis, commonly known as the MacDonnell mulga or the Hill mulga, is a species of Acacia native to central Australia. The Indigenous Australians the Alyawarr peoples know the plant as irrar, the Kaytetye know it as arleth-arlethe or arwele arleth-arlethe and the Western Arrernte peoples know it as irrkwarteke.
Acacia pilligaensis, commonly known as Pillaga wattle or pinbush wattle, is a tree or shrub belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae native to eastern Australia.
Acacia kettlewelliae, commonly known as buffalo wattle, is a tree or shrub of the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae that is endemic to south eastern Australia.
Acacia kybeanensis, commonly known as kybean wattle or kybeyan wattle, is a shrub of the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae that is endemic to south eastern Australia.
Acacia leptostachya, commonly known as Townsville wattle or slender wattle, is a shrub or small tree belonging to the genus Acacia and the subgenus Juliflorae that is native to north eastern Australia.