Lysiphyllum cunninghamii | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
(unranked): | Angiosperms |
(unranked): | Eudicots |
(unranked): | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
Tribe: | Cercideae |
Genus: | Lysiphyllum |
Species: | L. cunninghamii |
Binomial name | |
Lysiphyllum cunninghamii (Benth.) de Wit |
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Synonyms | |
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Lysiphyllum cunninghamii, commonly known as the Kimberley Bauhinia or Jigal Tree, is a species of plant in the Fabaceae family. It is native to northern Australia where it occurs from Western Australia through the Northern Territory to Queensland.
It grows as a shrub or tree up to 12 m (occasionally up to 18 m) in height with grey fissured or tessellated bark. It produces bright red flowers from April to October, followed by large, reddish-brown seed pods from November to January. The nectar produced by the flowers attracts honeyeaters and native bees.
It occurs on red alluvial sandy and loamy soils, often in watercourses and on levees, flood plains, pindan and the margins of monsoonal forests. It is found in the Central Kimberley, Dampierland, Gascoyne, Great Sandy Desert, Northern Kimberley, Ord Victoria Plain, Pilbara and Victoria Bonaparte, Katherine Region, IBRA bioregions.