Fabaceae
Dalbergia

Dalbergia eremicola Polhill

First published in Kew Bull. 23: 483 (1969)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Somalia to Kenya. It is a shrub and grows primarily in the desert or dry shrubland biome.

Descriptions

Leguminosae, J. B. Gillett, R. M. Polhill & B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1971

Morphology General Habit
Spiny deciduous shrub 2–3 m. tall; bark grey or greyish-brown, pruinose, irregularly flaking off in small pieces.
Morphology Branches
Branches of previous season’s growth mostly relatively short, spreading and spine-tipped, often several per node; flowering branchlets very short, cushion-shaped with tufts of leaves, covered with short mostly spreading hairs, glabrescent.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 1.5–4 cm. long; stipules elliptic or oblong, concave, 1.5–2 mm. long, caducous; lateral leaflets 6–8 on either side of rhachis, oblong, 4–10 mm. long, 1.5–5 mm. wide, rounded to slightly emarginate at either end, sparsely puberulous, glabrescent; lateral nerves few, rather spreading.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes or little-developed panicles arising on cushion-shaped branchlets with tufts of young leaves, 1–2.5 cm. long, with slender shortly hairy axes; bracts linear-lanceolate or oblong, 0.5–0.75 mm. long, caducous; bracteoles at top of 0.5–1 mm. long pedicel, similar.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 2–2.5 mm. long, sparsely hairy.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla 4–4.5 mm. long, white, fragrant; standard suborbicular or oblong-obovate, rather shortly clawed, glabrous; wings little shorter than standard and slightly exceeding keel.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 9, united or irregularly divided into 2 phalanges.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit oblong-elliptic, narrowed or shortly rounded to style-base, narrowed to a 0.8–1 cm. long stipe, 3–4 cm. long, 1.2–1.5 cm. wide, papery, glabrous, with lax prominulous venation at least over the seed-cavity, 1-seeded.
Habitat
Deciduous bushland, sometimes on rock outcrops; 240–810 m.
Distribution
K1 not known elsewhere
[FTEA]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Insufficiently known
Ecology
Africa: Somalia-Masai bushland and thicket
Morphology General Habit
Perennial, Not climbing, Shrub
[ILDIS]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/32249/183108964

Conservation
NT - near threatened
[IUCN]

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Shrub or small tree, 1.5–5 m tall
Morphology Branches
Branches of previous season’s growth mostly relatively short, spreading and spine-tipped, often several per node
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 1.5–5 cm long; leaflets 13–17, oblong, 4–11 x 1.5–5 mm, sparsely puberulous
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences on cushion-shaped branchlets with tufts of leaves, 1–2.5 cm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 2–2.5 mm long, sparsely hairy
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla 4–4.5 mm long, white; standard glabrous
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 9
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod elliptic-oblong, 3–4 x 1.2–1.5 cm, not winged, papery, glabrous, with lax venation at least over the seed-cavity, 1-seeded.
Distribution
S3; E Kenya
Ecology
Altitude range c. 75 m.
Vernacular
Dheydhey (Somali)
[FSOM]

Uses

Use
Wood
[ILDIS]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora of Somalia

    • Flora of Somalia
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • International Legume Database and Information Service

    • International Legume Database and Information Service (ILDIS) V10.39 Nov 2011
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • World Checklist of Vascular plants (WCVP)

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0