Acacia gloeotricha

Acacia gloeotricha
Conservation status
Priority One — Poorly Known Taxa (DEC)
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. gloeotricha
Binomial name
Acacia gloeotricha A.R.Chapman & Maslin [1]
Occurrence data from AVH
Synonyms [1]
Acacia aff. stipuligera(A.C.Beauglehole 53862) Acacia sp. I Acacia sp. I Kimberley Flora Racosperma gloeotrichum(A.R.Chapm. & Maslin) Pedley

Acacia gloeotricha is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the north of Western Australia. It is an openly-branched, sticky shrub with finely ribbed branchlets, erect, narrowly elliptic phyllodes, cylindrical spikes of bright golden yellow flowers and linear, crusty pods raised over the seeds

Description

Acacia gloeotricha is an openly-branched, sticky shrub that typically grows to a height of up to 4 m (13 ft), its branchlets finely ribbed and covered with glandular hairs. The phyllodes are erect, narrowly elliptic and asymmetric, the lower margin more or less straight and the upper margin convex, 20–90 mm (0.79–3.54 in) long and 8–18 mm (0.31–0.71 in) wide. The phyllodes are covered with glandular hairs, with three to five veins that are more prominent than the rest, and there are stipules at the base of the phyllodes. The flowers are bright golden yellow and borne in mostly two cylindrical spikes about 40 mm (1.6 in) long on a peduncle 7–15 mm (0.28–0.59 in) long. Flowering has been recorded in June, and the pods are linear, 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) long, crusty, covered with glandular hairs and raised over the seeds. The seeds are shiny black, broadly elliptic, about 4.5 mm (0.18 in) long with a white aril. ^{[2] [3] [4] [5]}

Taxonomy

Acacia gloeotricha was first formally described in 1999 by Alexander Robert Chapman and Bruce Maslin in the journal Nuytsia from specimens collected in the King Leopold Ranges in 1976. ^{[2] [6]} The specific epithet (gloeotricha) is derived from the ancient Greek "gloeo" meaning 'a sticky substance' and "thrix, trichos" meaning 'hair', referring to the "conspicuous glandular hairs on the branchlets, phyllodes, peduncles and pods". ^{[3] [7]}

Distribution and habitat

This species of wattle grows in sandy soils over sandstone, and is only known from the King Leopold Range in the Central Kimberley bioregion of northern Western Australia. ^{[8] [3]}

Conservation status

Acacia gloeotricha is listed as "Priority One" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, ^[8] meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations where it is potentially at risk. ^[9]

See also

• List of Acacia species

References

1. "Acacia gloeotricha". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
2. Chapman, Alexander R.; Maslin, Bruce R. (1999). "Acacia miscellany 20. Descriptions of three new Western Australian species of Acacia section Juliflorae (Leguminosae: Mimosoideae)". Nuytsia. 12 (3): 487–488. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
3. Chapman, Alexander R.; Maslin, Bruce R. "Acacia gloeotricha". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
4. "Acacia gloeotricha". Australian Biological Resources Study. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
5. "Acacia gloeotricha". World Wide Wattle. Western Australian Herbarium. 11 September 2018. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
6. "Acacia gloeotricha". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
7. George, Alex S.; Sharr, Francis A. (2023). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings - A Glossary (fifth ed.). Kardinya: Four Gables Press. p. 212. ISBN   9780645629538.
8. "Acacia gloeotricha". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
9. "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 3 February 2026.