Acacia roycei Maslin, Nuytsia 2: 150; 152, fig. 3 & 160, fig. 7 (1977)
Rather dense shrub or tree 2–6 m high. New shoots pale yellow appressed-puberulous. Branchlets appressed-puberulous at extremities, sometimes glabrous. Phyllodes ascending to erect, straight to slightly curved, terete, 4–8 cm long, 1–1.5 mm diam., subulate-pungent, rigid, grey-green, minutely sericeous between the 12–16 close, slightly raised nerves, glabrescent; gland 5–17 mm above base; pulvinus indistinct, flared slightly at base. Inflorescences simple, 1 or 2 per axil; peduncles 6–15 mm long, sparsely to moderately appressed-puberulous; heads globular, 5–6 mm diam., 55–75-flowered, golden. Flowers 5-merous; sepals irregularly united basally. Pods linear, raised over seeds on alternating sides, slightly constricted between seeds, strongly curved, to c. 5 cm long, 4–5 mm wide, chartaceous, glabrous, pale brown to yellow-brown. Seeds (immature) longitudinal; aril large, bright yellow.
Ranging from near Ajana N to Towrana Stn, S of Gascoyne Junction in central-western W.A. Grows mostly in closed Acacia scrubland in sand or sandy loam on red sandplains.
Similar to A. rigens which is most readily distinguished by its less pungent phyllodes with basal glands, 20–33-flowered heads and submoniliform pods 2–3 mm wide.
Type of accepted name
c. 6 km W of Overlander- Denham road towards Tamala, Shark Bay area, W.A., 6 Aug. 1974, B.R.Maslin 3680 ; holo: PERTH; iso: B, CANB, K, MEL, NSW, NY, PERTH.
Illustrations
B.R.Maslin, op. cit . 152, fig. 3; M.H.Simmons, Acacias Australia 190 (1981).
Representative collections
W.A.: 36 km S of Overlander Roadhouse on North West Coastal Hwy, B.R.Maslin 2780 (CANB, K, PERTH); Towrana Stn, A.L.Payne 34 (PERTH); Kalbarri to North West Coastal Hwy, M.H.Simmons 463 (PERTH).
(RSC)
The information presented here originally appeared on the WATTLE CD-ROM which was jointly published by the Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra, and the Department of Conservation and Land Management, Perth; it was produced by CSIRO Publishing from where it is available for purchase. The WATTLE custodians are thanked for allowing us to post this information here.
