Weeds of Australia - Fact Sheet

Top Scientific Name Synonyms Family Common Names Origin Naturalised Distribution Notes

Scientific Name

Acacia howittii F. Muell.

Synonyms

Acacia howitti F. Muell., ortho. var.
Racosperma howittii (F. Muell.) Pedley

Family

Fabaceae: sub-family Mimosoideae (New South Wales)
Leguminosae (South Australia)
Mimosaceae (Queensland, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory)

Common Names

Howitt's wattle, sticky wattle

Origin

Native to eastern Victoria, from the upper Macalister River area south to near Yarram and east to near Tabberabbera.

Naturalised Distribution

Naturalised beyond its native range in southern Victoria and sparingly naturalised in south-eastern South Australia. There are also reports that it is naturalised in Tasmania and southern New South Wales, but this is not yet backed up by herbarium records.

Notes

Sticky wattle (Acacia howittii) is regarded as an environmental weed in Tasmania and those parts of Victoria that are outside its native range. This species grows naturally in moist forests in south-eastern Victoria, where it is relatively rare. It has escaped cultivation as a garden ornamental in other parts of south-eastern Australia and spread into native vegetation (e.g. moist forests and dry sclerophyll forests), where it competes with indigenous species for water, space, light and nutrients.

It appears on some local environmental weed lists in southern Victoria (e.g. in Manningham City and the Shire of Nillumbik) and has also been recorded in conservation areas in this region (e.g. Morwell National Park and Yarra Bend Park). Though it is not recorded as naturalised in Tasmania's most recent plant census, this species is said to already be well established in native bushland in this state. In fact, sticky wattle (Acacia howittii ) is listed as one of the invasive mainland wattles that is being targeted by bushcare groups in Tasmania, and is also listed as a weed of Coningham Reserve near Hobart.

Sticky wattle (Acacia howittii) has also been recorded as a weed in Jackson Park, in the upper Blue Mountains west of Sydney, and may also be naturalised in the Cooma-Monaro Shire, in the southern tablelands region of New South Wales.