Cathormium 
MIMOSACEAE 23 
CATHORMIUM (Benth.) Hassk. 
A genus of c. 12 species from tropical America, Africa and Australia. Only 1 species in Australia. 
C. umbellatum (Vahl) Kosterm. 
Shrub to tree, 3.5-10 m high with dense canopy. 
Bark dark grey to black, platy. Branchlets 
with prominent pale lenticels, sometimes spiny. 
Stipules caducous. Pulvinus 2 mm long. Leaf rachis 
11-93 mm long with 1-3 pairs of pinnae, circular 
glands at junction of pinnae; pinnae 20-100 mm 
long, 3-7 pairs of leaflets per pinnae; leaflets 
asymmetrically obovate to elliptic, 21-43 mm long, 
9-27 mm wide, discolorous, shiny glabrous above, 
dull glabrous or hairy below. Inflorescence a 
pedunculate, many-flowered umbel, mostly axillary, 
rarely terminal. Peduncle 30-50 mm long. Pedicel 
4.5-9 mm long. Calyx cylindrical, toothed, 2.5 mm 
long. Corolla deeply lobed, 5 mm long. Stamens 
numerous, to 12 mm long, filaments united basally. 
Pods curved to concertina’d, to 170 mm long, 18-25 
mm wide, margin slightly indented to moniliform, 
breaking into indehiscent 1-seeded articles, dark or 
rusty velvety. Seeds dark brown, broadly oblong, 
12 mm long, 10 mm wide. Flowering: Aug - Nov; 
fruiting: pods persisting throughout most of the 
year. Fig. 11 
Widespread across coastal northern Australia. 
Also in Asia. Common in the DR on floodplains 
or rear of mangroves on heavy silty or clay soils. The 
Australian taxon is referable to subsp. moniliforme 
(DC.) Brummitt (Brummitt, 1970). 
DESMANTHUS Willd. 
A genus of 25-30 species in tropical America. One introduced species in Australia. 
*D. virgatus (L.) Willd. 
Sprawling to erect perennial shrub to 2 m high. 
Stipules setaceous, 3-5 mm long. Pulvinus 1-3 mm 
long. Leaf rachis sparsely hairy, 9-40(70) mm long 
with 2-8 pairs of pinnae; gland 1, near basal pair of 
pinnae; pinnae 10-40 mm long with 11-31 pairs of 
leaflets; leaflets linear, 2-5 mm long, 0.5-0.7 mm 
wide, sparsely pubescent on margin. Inflorescence a 
globular head on solitary, axillary peduncles, 
10-30 mm long. Flowers cream to white. Calyx 
tubular, 5-toothed. Corolla 5-merous, petals free, 
valvate. Stamens 10. Pods brown, in dense clusters, 
linear, 27-60 mm long, 3-4 mm wide, glabrous, raised 
over seeds. Seeds 8-22, oblique in pod, angular 
rhomboid, brown with irregular rows of pale blisters, 
c. 3 mm long, c. 2 mm wide. Flowering and friting 
irregularly throughout the year. Fig. 11 
A weedy species in disturbed coastal habitats 
from the Top End to Qld. Uncommon from scattered 
localities in the DR. 
ENTADA Adans. 
A pantropical genus of c. 30 species, through Africa, Madagascar, Asia, China, Malesia, northern Australia 
to America. One species in the NT. 
E. rheedii Sprengel 
E. pursaetha DC. 
Woody liane. Stipules not evident. Pulvinus c. 
6 mm long. Leaf rachis glabrous, 55-70 mm long, 
ending in a forked tendril 50-80 mm long, with 2 pairs 
of pinnae. Glands absent; pinnae 60-100 mm long, 
leaflets in 3-4 pairs, elliptic, 32-55 mm long, 17-27 
mm wide, shiny above, dull below, glabrous. 
Inflorescence an axillary, solitary spike, 90-120 mm 
long on glabrous peduncles 24-28 mm long; rachis 
sparsely hairy. Flowers hermaphrodite or male in 
lower part of spike; greenish yellow. Calyx 5-lobed, 
minute. Petals 5, 2 mm long. Stamens 10, adnate to 
tube at base, 5 mm long. Pods woody, more or less 
straight, to 2 m long, 75 mm wide, indehiscent, 
1-seeded articles breaking away from woody margins. 
