Leguminosae-mim Acacia kirkii Oliv.

| |	© Chris W. Fagg

Keywords in this picture :

• Fruit
• Flower & fruit
• Plant parts

Places where this species can be found :

• Diare (Tamale - Bolgatanga road) - NSBPGHANA
• Mole National Park - NSBPGHANA

Species information

Interest
Used to make bomas, and for firewood. The bark is used by the Masai to make tea. (Beentje 1994). In southern Africa the tree is heavily browsed, perhaps due to its gum content, and suffers from elephant damage (Timberlake et al. 1999).

Other Notes
Common names: ssp. kirkii var. kirkii: Kenya: Chemnialiliet (Kipsigis), Kimwea (Kamba), Ol'le (Masai); Tanzania: Mlaka (Kigogo), Mlilawana (Gogo), Mnusi (Hehe), Samange (Sandawe). ssp. mildbraedii: Rwanda: Umunyinya (Kinya-Ruanda); Uganda: Omuchinga (Ankole), Omukinga (Lukiga); Zaire: Loando (Kinande), Mititi (Kihumu), Nsad (Kital). Species characteristics: Tree to 15 high, or a multistemmed shrub, with a flattened crown. It has distinctive green stems with papery peeling bark. It is found in woodland, wooded grassland, riverine and swamp forest, forming groves on seasonally flooded clay rich soils by rivers and pans. It has a particularly disjunct distribution in the southern part of its range. A variable species, it is divided into 3 taxa depending on whether its pods have very distinct raised `warts' over each seed (ssp. kirkii) or not (ssp. mildbraedii). These `warts' are unique in the African Acacia species. Browsed by animals, particularly elephants that can do damage. Also produces gum easily. Distribution: ssp. kirkii var. kirkii: Angola (Huila, Mocamedes); Botswana (Chobe, Central, Ngamiland, Northern); Kenya (Rift valley, Masai, Kajiado, Machakos, Eastern, Nairobi, Kiambu, Narok, Taita); Mozambique (Tete); Tanzania (Northern, Kondoa, Mbeya, Iringa, Mbulu, Musoma, Masai, Mpwapwa, Dodoma, Mbeya/Njombe); Zambia (Southern, Northern, Eastern); Zimbabwe (Hwange, Hurungwe, Tsholotsho); Namibia (Kaokoland, Caprivi Oos). ssp. kirkii var. sublaevis: Zaire (Forestier Central, Isangi). ssp. mildbraedii: Angola (Huila); Rwanda (Biumba); Sudan ); Uganda (Mengo, Kigezi, Masaka, Ankole, Toro, Bunyoro, Mbarara, Acholi/Lango); Zaire (Lacs Edouard et Kivu, Lac Albert). Altitude range: ssp. kirkii var. kirkii: 105-1981m; ssp. mildbraedii: 762- (800-1400) -1500m

Specimen information

Collector
Fagg, C. W.

Specimen Number
007