Acacia cyclops

Western coastal wattle, Western Coastal Wattle

Family: Fabaceae · Type: shrub · Not Native

Conservation status: Cal-IPC Yes

Western coastal wattle is a naturalized shrub found in southern coastal and Peninsular Ranges areas in disturbed coastal environments and dunes at elevations below 100 meters. Flowering from December to March, this plant produces golden yellow flowers in small raceme clusters. Growing as an unarmed shrub to 6 meters tall with slightly angled twigs, it features simple leaves 4 to 10 centimeters long that are narrowly oblong to obovate with 3 to 5 prominent longitudinal veins. Its distinctive leaves have a slightly oblique tip with a blunt point and measure 4 to 15 millimeters wide. The fruit is a sickle-shaped, leathery pod 5 to 13 centimeters long, often persisting after seed release, with seeds bearing bright orange to scarlet arils.

Habitat: Uncommon. Disturbed areas, coastal dunes

Bloom period: Dec-Mar

Elevation: < 100 m

Bioregions: SCo, PR

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.