Vachellia sphaerocephala

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids I
Ordo: Fabales

Familia: Fabaceae
Subfamilia: Caesalpinioideae
Tribus: Acacieae
Genus: Vachellia
Species: Vachellia sphaerocephala
Name

Vachellia sphaerocephala (Cham. & Schltdl.) Seigler & Ebinger Phytologia 87(3): 167 (2005 publ. 2006)

Type: C.J.W. Schiede & F. Deppe s.n. "684" (March 1829; B, destroyed; lectotype: HAL 0040983, designated by Seigler & Ebinger 1995 [as 'holotype'] and 2006; type fragment and photograph: US-US00000615-764680; syntypes: HAL 0040938 [18??] and 0040984 [October 1828]).
Type locality: Mexico. Veracruz: Actopán, sea level.

Synonyms

Basionym
Acacia sphaerocephala Schltdl. & Cham., Linnaea 5: 594 (1830)
Heterotypic
Acacia veracruzensis Schenck, Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 12: 362 (1913); not accepted by Govaerts (1995) and Seigler & Ebinger (1995: 133) [cited as Acacia sphaerocephala]
Type: H. Schenck 916 (13 October 1908; B, destroyed; lectotype: M-M0218447 [June 1912], designated by Seigler & Ebinger 1995 [as 'holotype'] and 2006; type fragment and photograph: US(-US00000633-764683, -US00000634-764684); isotypes: F, HAL 0040934).
Type locality: Mexico. Veracruz[: sand dunes S of Veracruz, sea level].
Acacia dolichocephala Saff., J. Washington Acad. Sci. 5: 355 (1915), non Harms, Annuario Reale Ist. Bot. Roma 7: 86 (1899) ≡ Vachellia dolichocephala (Harms) Kyal. & Boatwr.; not accepted by Govaerts (1995) and Seigler & Ebinger (1995: 133) [cited as Acacia sphaerocephala]
Type: J.M. Greenman 87 (24 January 1906; holotype: F-F0057985F; isotypes: GH, NY-NY00001468, US-US00000204-692164; photograph: K-K000081883).
Type locality: Mexico. Veracruz: along the shore N of the city of Veracruz.
Inga cornigera Kostel., Allg. Med.-Pharm. Fl. 4: 1355 (1835)

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Northern America
Regional: Mexico
Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Southwest
Continental: Southern America
Regional: Central America
Honduras

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Seigler, D.S. & Ebinger, J.E. 2005. New combinations in the genus Vachellia (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) from the New World. Phytologia 87(3): 139–178. BHL Reference page.

Additional references

Govaerts, R.H.A. 1995. World Checklist of Seed Plants 1(1, 2). 483, 529 pp. MIM, Deurne. ISBN 90-341-0852-X (issue 1) ISBN 90-341-0853-8 (issue 2). Reference page.
Seigler, D.S. & Ebinger, J.E. 1995. Taxonomic revision of the ant-acacias (Fabaceae, Mimosoideae, Acacia, series Gummiferae) of the New World. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 82: 117–138. BHL Reference page.
Heuchert, B., Braun, U., Tkach, N., Marx, D. & Röser, M. 2017. Biography of D. F. L. von Schlechtendal and type material of his new taxa preserved in the herbarium of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (HAL) and other botanical collections. Schlechtendalia 31: 1–143. PDF Reference page. [see page 22.]

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2021. Vachellia sphaerocephala in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2021 November 16. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2021. Vachellia sphaerocephala. Published online. Accessed: 16 November 2021.
Tropicos.org 2021. Vachellia sphaerocephala. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2021 November 17.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Vachellia sphaerocephala in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 16 November 2021.
Vachellia sphaerocephala – Taxon details on World Wide Wattle.
Yonekura, K. & Kajita, T. (2003 onwards) YList – index for Japanese-scientific plant names (「植物和名ー学名インデックス). Published on Internet. Accessed: 2021 November 16

Vernacular names
Deutsch: Kugelköpfige Akazie
English: Bull-horn Acacia
日本語: アリアカシア

Vachellia sphaerocephala, the bull's horn thorn or bee wattle, is a plant species in the family Fabaceae. The name comes from the shape of the thorns which do indeed resemble the horns of a bull. The tree has a strong, symbiotic relationship with a species of stinging ant, Pseudomyrmex ferruginea.[2] This tree is endemic to Mexico.[3]
References

Seigler DS, Ebinger JE. (2005). "New combinations in the genus Vachellia (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) from the New World". Phytologia. 87 (3): 139–78.
Whitney. H.M. and B.J. Glover. 2007. Coevolution: Plant–Insect. Encyclopedia of Life Sciences, 1–7
Encyclopedia of Life