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IMPORTANT WESTERN BROWSE PLANTS 71 
MIMOSA FAMILY (MIMOSACEAE) 
ACACIAS (ACACIA SPP.) 
The genus Acacia is a huge one, of at least 300 species, and it 
is of most importance in Australia and Africa. It is a highly valu- 
able timber group in Australia, and a number of the Australian 
acaclas are now being cultivated in this country, California espe- 
cially. The bark and pods of all acacias are more or less astringent 
and many species are utilized on this account in tanning. 
About 16 species of acacia are native to the West, nearly all of 
which are wholly confined to the region from western Texas to 
southern California and south into Mexico and Lower California. 
Probably all have some forage value though none of the others 
equal catclaw in this respect and some are quite inferior. 
Catclaw (Acacia greggii)* (fig. 16, D-G), also called catclaw 
acacia, cat’s claw, devil’s claw, Grege(’s) acacia, and paradise flower, 
varies in size and form from a very prickly bush to a tall shrub 
or small tree. It is a southwestern species, ranging from western 
Texas to southern Nevada, northern Lower California, and north- 
ern Chihuahua, Mexico. It is a typical desert or semidesert species, 
very drought-resistant (721), often occurring in dry valleys and ra- 
vines, and on sandy gravelly arid mesas, usually in considerable 
abundance. It is especially characteristic of the creosote bush 
(Covillea) belt, or Lower Sonoran Zone, frequently in association 
with mesquite (Prosopis). The dense cylindrical spikes of fra- 
grant, yellow flowers appear as a rule in May and June, while the 
brown, contorted pods mature mainly from July to September. 
Because of its abundance, vigor, and ability to stand heavy graz- 
ing and the fair palatability of its foliage catclaw furnishes con- 
siderable feed, especially on depleted desert ranges. Where there 
- is a good stand of grass, it plays but a small part in the range forage 
except in drought. The pods are of inferior palatability. Catclaw 
has the desirable habit of greening out in the spring before the new 
leaves appear, and these relatively succulent green twigs are much 
relished by cattle. Since the plant is leguminous the percentage 
of protein or nitrogenous matter in the edible plant tissues is pre- 
sumably high. 
Catclaw, when of tree habit, is valued on the range for the shade 
it produces, a matter of especial importance in arid places. Gold- 
man (45) notes that catclaw affords by its shade and thorny protec- 
tion a “ favorite hiding place for jack rabbits and other mammals”; 
it is also useful as a bee plant (75) and for shellac (118, 127). 
OTHER SPECIES 
Mescat acacia, often known as mescat (A. constricta), a common 
spiny southwestern bush (fig. 16, A-C), is considered inferior to 
almost worthless forage, except that the pods are often taken. 
Fernleaf acacia, sometimes called dwarf acacia (A. filictoides) (fig. 
16, H, I) and Lemmon acacia (A. lemmoni) are small shrubs, 10 
16The original American catclaw is Pithecollobium unguis-cati (l.) Mart. (= Mimosa 
unguis-cati L. and Zygia unguis-cati (L.) Sudworth) of Florida, the West Indies, 
Mexico, and South America. The American Joint Committee on Horticultural Nomencla- 
ture (3) recommends standardization of the name blackbead for P. unguis-catt, 
