Blue wattle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Blue wattle |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Acacia
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| Species: |
validinervia
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| Occurrence data from AVH | |
Acacia validinervia also commonly known as nyalanyalara, nyala nyala, alumaru or blue wattle, is a shrub of the genus Acacia and the subgenus Phyllodineae endemic to arid areas of inland Australia.
Description
The erect slender shrub typically grows to a height of 1 to 4 metres (3 to 13 ft). It can have a straggly or spindly habit with multiple stems. The glabrous branchlets and branches are covered in a fine, white powdery coating. Like most species of Acacia it has phyllodes rather than true leaves. The evergreen phyllodes have an elliptic to oblanceolate shape that can be slightly recurved. Each phyllode is 6 to 13 centimetres (2 to 5 in) in length and 15 to 55 millimetres (0.59 to 2.17 in) wide with a thick leathery texture and have a prominent midrib and marginal nerves. It blooms from July to August and produces yellow flowers. The spherical inflorescences flower-heads have a diameter of 5 to 6 mm (0.20 to 0.24 in) containing 50 to 80 densely packed golden flowers. The firmly chartaceous to thinly coriaceous seed pods that form after flowering have a narrowly oblong shape and are straight to slightly curved with a length of up to 12 cm (4.7 in) and a width of 7 to 8 mm (0.28 to 0.31 in). The seeds inside are arranged longitudinally to slightly obliquely and have an oblong to elliptic shape with a length of 5 to 8 mm (0.20 to 0.31 in) and a width of 3 to 5 mm (0.12 to 0.20 in).
Distribution
It is native to an area in the desert in the Central Ranges of the eastern Goldfields region of Western Australia growing in red sand, stony sand, loamy or clay soils. The shrub is also found in north western South Australia and southern parts of the Northern Territory. The range of the species extends from as far west as Warburton in the Blackstone and Cavenagh and Blackstone Ranges to the north western margins of the Simpson Desert in the Northern Territory in the north down to around the Musgrave and Tomkinson Ranges of South Australia where it is situated along dry creeks and river beds.
