SPECIES: Acacia cochlocarpa subsp. velutinosa — Velvety Spiral Pod Wattle
CLASSIFICATION: Critically endangered
As is with so many of our flora species, the Velvety Spiral Pod Wattle is no exception. It likes a little fire, for regeneration. For this species of wattle though, it may have just become a little too picky, and now finds itself on the critically endangered list. The Velvety Spiral Pod Wattle also grows in hard, white clay, quite possibly a unique type of soil. It has bright, golden wattle heads and flat, strongly curved leaves, described as 'velvety' as it is 'hairy'.
Endemic to WA, the remaining three natural populations are found outside of Perth. It's thought that there could be as little as 85 plants of this species left. Previous land clearing due to agriculture has most likely played a part in the decline of the species. But, when there's so few plants left, there's also little known about the species itself.
Photo: WA Department of Environment & Conservation