SPECIES: Acacia depressa — Echidna Wattle
CLASSIFICATION: Vulnerable
Spiny, low-growing and tough-looking (that’s the Echidna bit), the Echidna Wattle is a small but striking plant found only in the south-west of Western Australia. Despite its hardy appearance, this native wattle is incredibly vulnerable. With fewer than 250 mature plants known in the wild, it clings to survival in a very restricted habitat.
The threats are many: inappropriate fire regimes can wipe out entire populations before plants have time to set seed, invasive grasses and weeds outcompete native seedlings, land clearing and soil disturbance continue to shrink its already limited range and grazing by native herbivores and introduced animals such as rabbits adds further pressure. It’s a reminder that even the toughest-looking species can be dangerously close to disappearing.
Photo: B R Maslin