Acacia horridula facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Acacia horridula |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Acacia
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| Species: |
horridula
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| Occurrence data from AVH | |
Acacia horridula is a type of shrub that belongs to a large group of plants called Acacia. It is special because it only grows naturally in the southwestern part of Australia. This means it is an endemic species.
Description of Acacia horridula
This slim shrub usually grows to be about 0.3 to 0.6 meters (about 1 to 2 feet) tall. It has a single main stem. From May to August, you can see its pretty yellow flowers.
Its small branches, called branchlets, are often reddish-brown or light brown. They are covered in soft, woolly hairs. It also has small, pointed leaf-like parts called stipules. These stipules are about 2.5 to 4 millimeters long.
Like most Acacia plants, it does not have true leaves. Instead, it has special flattened stems called phyllodes. These evergreen phyllodes are usually packed closely together on the branchlets. They have a unique, narrow, and somewhat triangular shape.
The plant's simple flowers grow one by one in the axils (the spot where a leaf or branch joins the stem). These flowers form round heads, each with four pale yellow blooms.
After the flowers bloom, long, round, reddish-brown seed pods appear. These pods have stripes and are curved. They are narrow at both ends and can grow up to 7.5 centimeters (about 3 inches) long. They are about 3.5 millimeters wide. Inside the pods, the seeds are arranged lengthwise. Each oblong seed is about 4 to 5 millimeters long. They have a cone-shaped, fleshy part called an aril at one end.
How Acacia horridula Was Named
The first official description of Acacia horridula was made by a botanist named Carl Meissner. This happened in 1844. He included it in his work called Leguminosae, which was part of Plantae Preissianae.
Later, in 2003, another botanist named Leslie Pedley reclassified it. He moved it to a different group and called it Racosperma horridulum. However, in 2006, it was moved back to the Acacia group.
Where Acacia horridula Grows
This plant naturally grows along the south coast of Western Australia. You can find it in the Peel and South West regions.
It often grows on rocky hillsides. It prefers sandy or gravelly soils that are found over granite rock. You will typically see it in the Darling Range. It is usually part of the plant communities found in Eucalyptus woodlands.
