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black wattle

auri, blackwattle, Darwin black wattle, earleaf acacia, earpod wattle, northern black wattle, papuan wattle, tuhkehn pweimau

Habit Shrubs or small trees, erect, to 10 m. Trees, erect, to 35 m.
Twigs

dark purplish brown to black, slightly flexuous, ridged, puberulent.

gray to dark reddish brown, not flexuous, slightly ridged, glabrous.

Leaves

compound, 50–140 mm;

petiole 5–30 mm, puberulent, gland present, below proximalmost pinna pair, 0.7–1.5 mm diam., puberulent;

rachis glands scattered, with some between pinna pairs (at pinna pair nodes and internodes);

pinnae 7–31 pairs, 15–70 mm, 3–7 mm between pinna pairs;

leaflets 20–70 pairs per pinna, blades linear, 1.5–3.5 × 0.5–0.8 mm, base cuneate, apex obtuse, not apiculate, surfaces puberulent.

phyllodic;

phyllode flat, falcate, linear to narrowly elliptic, 100–200 × 12–28 mm, venation parallel, mostly with 3 prominent veins, minor veins prominent, apex narrowly obtuse, not apiculate, surfaces glabrous;

gland 1, 0–3 mm distal to pulvinus;

pulvinus 3–5 mm.

Inflorescences

globose heads, densely flowered, 5–9 mm diam., in axillary pseudoracemes of 20–35 heads or terminal pseudopanicles of 1–10 pseudoracemes.

cylindrical, interrupted spikes, loosely flowered, 50–85 × 4–7 mm, solitary or in fascicles of 2 or 3 in leaf axils, rarely in pseudoracemes.

Peduncles

4–9 mm.

5–10 mm.

Flowers

5-merous, pale yellow to cream;

calyx 0.6–1.1 mm;

corolla 1.4–2 mm;

filaments 3.5–4.5 mm;

ovary glabrous.

5-merous, light golden yellow;

calyx 0.9–1.3 mm;

corolla 1.6–2.4 mm;

filaments 2.5–3.5 mm;

ovary pubescent.

Legumes

flattened, linear, 30–140 × 4–8 mm, slightly constricted between seeds.

flattened, oblong, 30–160 × 8–18 mm, not constricted between seeds.

Seeds

aril light yellow, obovate, 1–2 mm, forming cap on seed.

aril light yellow, encircling seed.

2n

= 26.

= 26.

Acacia mearnsii

Acacia auriculiformis

Phenology Flowering spring, early summer. Flowering summer, fall.
Habitat Disturbed areas. Disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–400 m. [0–1300 ft.] 0–20 m. [0–70 ft.]
Distribution
from FNA
CA; se Australia [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; Pacific Islands (Kei Islands, New Guinea); n Australia [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Acacia mearnsii is known from Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and Santa Barbara counties.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Acacia auriculiformis is known from Collier, Martin, and Miami-Dade counties.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (Mimosoid clade) > Acacia Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (Mimosoid clade) > Acacia
Sibling taxa
A. auriculiformis, A. baileyana, A. cultriformis, A. cyclops, A. dealbata, A. decurrens, A. longifolia, A. melanoxylon, A. paradoxa, A. pycnantha, A. redolens, A. retinodes, A. saligna, A. verticillata
A. baileyana, A. cultriformis, A. cyclops, A. dealbata, A. decurrens, A. longifolia, A. mearnsii, A. melanoxylon, A. paradoxa, A. pycnantha, A. redolens, A. retinodes, A. saligna, A. verticillata
Name authority De Wildeman: Pl. Bequaert. 3: 61. (1925) — (as mearnsi) A. Cunningham ex Bentham: London J. Bot. 1: 377. (1842) — (as auriculaeformis)
Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
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