AusTraits

Indigofera australis

Explore the data for this taxon in the portal

Family Fabaceae

Taxonomy: Indigofera australis Willd.

Synonyms: 5 (APC 2026-07-30)
  • Anil australis A.D.Chapm. (nomenclatural synonym)
  • Anila australis (Willd.) Kuntze (nomenclatural synonym)
  • Indigofera angulata Lindl. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Indigofera lindleyana Spreng. ex Steud. (taxonomic synonym)
  • Indigofera sylvatica Sieber ex Spreng. (taxonomic synonym)

Distribution (APC): WA, SA, Qld, NSW, ACT, Vic, Tas

Profiles: APC, Flora of Australia, ALA, iNaturalist, NSW Flora, SA eFlora, Vic Flora, Florabase, ATRP

Traits

Top source datasets: Campbell_2006 (6), Carey_2003 (3), Cheal_2017 (6), Clarke_2009 (5), Clarke_2015 (3), Collette_2021 (1), Curtis_2012 (14), Doherty_2021 (2), Draper_2023 (3), Du_2018 (25), Du_2019 (16), Hughes_1992 (4), Jordan_2001 (7), Kew_2019_1 (5), Kew_2019_6 (1), McCarthy_2017 (5), McGlone_2015 (6), Meers_2007 (11), Mokany_2015 (2), Morgan_2011_1 (5), NHNSW_2014_2 (2), NHNSW_2022 (4), NHNSW_2023 (14), NSWFRD_2014 (10), Ooi_2007 (101), Pickup_2021 (20), Purdie_1976 (4), RBGV_2022 (4), RBGV_2023 (18), SAH_2022 (4), SAH_2023 (17), Schmidt_1993 (2), Sjostrom_2006 (4), Sweedman_2006 (4), WAH_2022_2 (4), WAH_2023_2 (2), Wenk_2022 (2), Wenk_2023 (1), White_2020 (19), Williams_2011 (8), Wright_2000 (9), eFLOWER_Dun_2022 (25). See below for a full list of sources.
Summary: AusTraits contains 106 traits from 408 records in 42 datasets.

Traits by category (click to expand). For categorical traits, the values are listed. For numerical traits, the mean and range are shown.

fire response
  • resprouting_capacity (categorical): fire_killed (3); partial_resprouting (4); resprouts (7) [sources: Campbell_2006; Carey_2003; Clarke_2015; Doherty_2021; Meers_2007; NSWFRD_2014; Pickup_2021; Purdie_1976; White_2020]
  • post_fire_recruitment (categorical): post_fire_recruitment (9); post_fire_recruitment_absent (3) [sources: Campbell_2006; Carey_2003; Cheal_2017; Clarke_2015; NSWFRD_2014; Pickup_2021; Purdie_1976]
  • fire_time_from_fire_to_flowering (numerical): 24 mo (24-24 mo) [sources: NSWFRD_2014]
flower morphology
  • flower_colour (categorical): red_brown (1) [sources: NHNSW_2014_2]
  • sex_type (categorical): hermaphrodite (2); monoecious (1) [sources: Jordan_2001; Sjostrom_2006]
fruit morphology
  • fruit_length (numerical): 33.33 mm (20-45 mm) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • fruit_width (numerical): 2.5 mm (2-3 mm) [sources: SAH_2023]
  • fruit_height (numerical): 2.5 mm (2-3 mm) [sources: SAH_2023]
  • fruit_type (categorical): capsule (1); legume (4) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023; Sjostrom_2006; Wright_2000]
  • fruit_fleshiness (categorical): dry (3) [sources: Jordan_2001; Sjostrom_2006; Wright_2000]
  • fruit_dehiscence (categorical): dehiscent (3) [sources: RBGV_2023; Sjostrom_2006; Wright_2000]
  • fruit_colour (categorical): brown (1) [sources: SAH_2023]
leaf morphology
  • leaf_area (numerical): 616.03 mm2 (197.73-1367.6 mm2) [sources: Curtis_2012; Meers_2007; Mokany_2015]
  • leaf_length (numerical): 45.15 mm (10-100 mm) [sources: Curtis_2012; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_width (numerical): 7.59 mm (5-9 mm) [sources: Curtis_2012; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023]
  • leaf_dry_mass (numerical): 14.2 mg (14.2-14.2 mg) [sources: Curtis_2012]
  • leaf_mass_per_area (numerical): 98.48 g/m2 (71.37-136.43 g/m2) [sources: Curtis_2012; Du_2018; Meers_2007]
  • leaf_area_ratio (numerical): 4.05 mm2/mg (3.04-5.92 mm2/mg) [sources: Du_2018]
  • leaf_dry_matter_content (numerical): 0.31 g/g (0.31-0.31 g/g) [sources: Curtis_2012]
  • leaf_shape (categorical): elliptical (3); oblong (3); obovate (1); obtriangular (1); terete (1) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_margin (categorical): entire (1) [sources: NHNSW_2014_2]
  • leaf_compoundness (categorical): compound (4) [sources: McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • leaf_phyllotaxis (categorical): alternate (3) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
  • plant_photosynthetic_organ (categorical): leaf (3) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
life history
  • photosynthetic_pathway (categorical): c3 (2) [sources: White_2020; Williams_2011]
  • plant_growth_form (categorical): shrub (18) [sources: Campbell_2006; Clarke_2009; Curtis_2012; Hughes_1992; McGlone_2015; NHNSW_2022; NSWFRD_2014; Pickup_2021; Purdie_1976; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2; Wenk_2022; White_2020; Williams_2011]
  • life_form (categorical): phanerophyte (3) [sources: Meers_2007; Morgan_2011_1; Williams_2011]
  • life_history (categorical): perennial (9) [sources: Cheal_2017; Curtis_2012; Jordan_2001; Morgan_2011_1; NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2; Wenk_2023]
  • woodiness_detailed (categorical): woody (5) [sources: NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2; Wenk_2022]
  • stem_growth_habit (categorical): erect (2); spreading (3) [sources: NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; SAH_2022; WAH_2022_2]
  • nitrogen_fixing (categorical): nitrogen_fixer (3); non_nitrogen_fixer (1) [sources: Meers_2007; Schmidt_1993; White_2020; Williams_2011]
  • root_structure (categorical): arbuscular_mycorrhizal (1); ectomycorrhizal (1) [sources: Meers_2007; Schmidt_1993]
  • parasitic (categorical): not_parasitic (1) [sources: White_2020]
  • pollination_syndrome (categorical): insect (2) [sources: Draper_2023; White_2020]
  • pollination_system (categorical): biotic_unspecialised (1) [sources: Williams_2011]
  • dispersal_syndrome (categorical): anemochory (1); ballistic (1); barochory (3); undefined (1); zoochory (1) [sources: Draper_2023; Meers_2007; Morgan_2011_1; NSWFRD_2014; White_2020; Williams_2011]
  • dispersers (categorical): ants (1); invertebrates (1); wind (1) [sources: Campbell_2006; Draper_2023; White_2020]
  • flowering_time (categorical): nnnnnnnnyyyn (1); nnnnnnnyynnn (1) [sources: Hughes_1992; White_2020]
  • seedbank_location (categorical): soil_seedbank (6) [sources: Campbell_2006; NSWFRD_2014; Pickup_2021]
  • serotiny (categorical): not_serotinous (1) [sources: Hughes_1992]
  • seedbank_longevity_class (categorical): long_persistent (1); persistent (6) [sources: Cheal_2017; NSWFRD_2014; Pickup_2021; White_2020]
  • seed_dormancy_class (categorical): physical_dormancy (2) [sources: Collette_2021; Ooi_2007]
  • vegetative_reproduction_ability (categorical): not_vegetative (3) [sources: Meers_2007; Morgan_2011_1; White_2020]
  • clonal_spread_mechanism (categorical): non_clonal (2) [sources: Meers_2007; Williams_2011]
  • bud_bank_location (categorical): basal_buds (3); basal_stem_buds (2); bud-bearing_root (7); none (1) [sources: Campbell_2006; Carey_2003; Clarke_2009; Clarke_2015; Doherty_2021; NSWFRD_2014]
seed morphology
  • seed_dry_mass (numerical): 5.52 mg (3.5-7.13 mg) [sources: Kew_2019_1; Meers_2007; Mokany_2015; Ooi_2007]
  • seed_length (numerical): 1.85 mm (1.7-2 mm) [sources: Jordan_2001; RBGV_2023]
  • seed_width (numerical): 1.5 mm (1.5-1.5 mm) [sources: Jordan_2001]
  • seed_shape (categorical): polyhedral (2) [sources: RBGV_2023; SAH_2023]
stem morphology
  • wood_density (numerical): 0.62 mg/mm3 (0.59-0.63 mg/mm3) [sources: McCarthy_2017]
whole plant morphology

Sources

dataset_idn_traitsn_recordsreference
Ooi_20072101M. K. J. Ooi, P. Myerscough, and T. Auld. “Unpublished data: Longterm seed mass field campaign, University of New South Wales”. 2007.
Du_2018525P. Du, S. K. Arndt, and C. Farrell. “Relationships between plant drought response, traits, and climate of origin for green roof plant selection”. Ecological Applications 28.7 (2018), pp. 1752-1761. doi: 10.1002/eap.1782.
eFLOWER_Dun_20222025L. Dun and H. Sauquet. “Unpublished: Floral traits for GAP taxa, University of New South Wales, Australia”. 2022.
Pickup_2021520M. Pickup and T. McDonald. Bushfire impacts — A national model for assessing local landscape restoration priorities. Project Phoenix Report. Greening Australia, 2021. url: https://www.greeningaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/1.02R2.pdf.
White_20201919M. White, S. Sinclair, and D. Frood. Victorian Vital Attributes Database. database. Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria, 2020.
RBGV_20231218VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
SAH_20231317S. H. of South Australia. eFlora of SA, Electronic Flora of South Australia. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/.
Du_2019416P. Du, S. K. Arndt, and C. Farrell. “Can the turgor loss point be used to assess drought response to select plants for green roofs in hot and dry climates?”. Plant and Soil 441.1-2 (2019), pp. 399-408. doi: 10.1007/s11104-019-04133-7.
Curtis_20121414E. M. Curtis, A. Leigh, and S. Rayburg. “Relationships among leaf traits of Australian arid zone plants: alternative modes of thermal protection”. Australian Journal of Botany 60.6 (2012), pp. 471-483. doi: 10.1071/bt11284.
NHNSW_2023914N. H. of New South Wales. The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Version 2.0.. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Meers_20071111T. Meers. “Role of plant functional traits in determining the response of vegetation to land use change on the Delatite Peninsula, Victoria.”. PhD. University of Melbourne, 2007.
NSWFRD_20141010B. Kenny, C. Orscheg, E. Tasker, M. A. Gill, and R. Bradstock. NSW Flora Fire Response Database, v2.1. database. NSW Department of Planning Industry and Environment, 2014.
Wright_200099I. J. Wright, H. T. Clifford, R. Kidson, M. L. Reed, B. L. Rice, and M. Westoby. “A survey of seed and seedling characters in 1744 Australian dicotyledon species: Cross-species trait correlations and correlated trait-shifts within evolutionary lineages”. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 69 (2000), pp. 521-547. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2000.tb01222.x.
Williams_201188R. P. Duncan, S. E. Clemants, R. T. Corlett, A. K. Hahs, M. A. McCarthy, M. J. McDonnell, M. W. Schwartz, K. Thompson, P. A. Vesk, and N. S. G. Williams. “Plant traits and extinction in urban areas: a meta-analysis of 11 cities”. Global Ecology and Biogeography 20.4 (2011), pp. 509-519. doi: 10.1111/j.1466-8238.2010.00633.x.
Jordan_200177G. J. Jordan. “An investigation of long-distance dispersal based on species native to both Tasmania and New Zealand”. Australian Journal of Botany 49.3 (2001), pp. 333-340. doi: 10.1071/bt00024.
Campbell_200666M. L. Campbell and P. J. Clarke. “Response of montane wet sclerophyll forest understorey species to fire- evidence from high and low intensity fires”. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 127 (2006), pp. 63-73. doi: unknown.
Cheal_201766D. Cheal. Growth stages and tolerable fire intervals for Victoria's native vegetation data sets. Fire and adaptive management, report no. 84. Victorian Government Department of Sustainability and Environment Melbourne, 2010.
McGlone_201566M. S. McGlone, S. J. Richardson, G. J. Jordan, and G. L. Perry. “Is there a `suboptimal' woody species height? A response to Scheffer et al.”. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 30.1 (2015), pp. 4-5. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2014.09.007.
Clarke_200925P. J. Clarke, K. J. E. Knox, M. L. Campbell, and L. M. Copeland. “Post-fire recovery of woody plants in the New England Tableland Bioregion”. Cunninghamia 11 (2009), pp. 221-239. doi: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/4907.
Kew_2019_115Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Seed Information Database (SID) and Seed Bank Database. 2019. url: http://data.kew.org/sid/.
McCarthy_201715J. K. McCarthy, J. M. Dwyer, and K. Mokany. “A regional-scale assessment of using metabolic scaling theory to predict ecosystem properties”. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 286.1915 (2019), p. 20192221. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2019.2221.
Morgan_2011_155J. Morgan. “Unpublished data: Grassy woodland traits, La Trobe University”. 2011.
Hughes_199244L. Hughes and B. Rice. “Unpublished data: Traits data for 643 species, Macquarie University”. 1992.
NHNSW_202244N. H. of New South Wales. The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Version 2.0.. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Purdie_197644R. W. Purdie and R. O. Slatyer. “Vegetation succession after fire in sclerophyll woodland communities in south-eastern Australia”. Australian Journal of Ecology 1 (1976), pp. 223-236.
RBGV_202244VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
SAH_202244S. H. of South Australia. eFlora of SA, Electronic Flora of South Australia. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/.
Sjostrom_200644A. Sjöström and C. L. Gross. “Life-history characters and phylogeny are correlated with extinction risk in the Australian angiosperms”. Journal of Biogeography 33.2 (2006), pp. 271-290. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2699.2005.01393.x.
Sweedman_200624L. Sweedman and D. Merritt. Australian Seeds: A Guide to Their Collection, Identification, and Biology. CSIRO Publishing, 2006. ISBN: 9780643094079.
WAH_2022_244Western Australian Herbarium. Florabase—the Western Australian Flora.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2022. url: https://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au/.
Carey_200333A. C. &. M. E. &. P. H. &. M. L. &. T. M. &. P. O. &. S. S. &. D. S. &. N. Webb. Wildfires in the ACT 2003: Report on Initial Impacts on Natural Ecosystems. Technical Report No. 17. Environment ACT, 2003. url: https://www.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/2539593/17-wildfires-in-the-act-report-on-initial-impacts-on-natural-ecosystems-2003.pdf.
Clarke_201533P. J. Clarke, M. J. Lawes, B. P. Murphy, J. Russell-Smith, C. E. Nano, R. Bradstock, N. J. Enright, J. B. Fontaine, C. R. Gosper, I. Radford, J. J. Midgley, and R. M. Gunton. “A synthesis of postfire recovery traits of woody plants in Australian ecosystems”. Science of The Total Environment 534 (2015), pp. 31-42. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.04.002.
Draper_202333J. T. Draper, S. Delean, J. G. Conran, P. Weinstein, and B. S. Simpson. “Life-history characteristics and climate correlates of dioecious plant species in central southern Australia”. Australian Journal of Botany unknown.unknown (2023), p. unknown. doi: 10.1071/BT22110.
Doherty_202122M. Doherty. “Fire Severity and Plant Community Dynamics in the Australian Alps, Southeastern New South Wales”. PhD. Australian National University, 2021. url: http://hdl.handle.net/1885/224564.
Mokany_201522K. Mokany, J. J. Thomson, A. J. J. Lynch, G. J. Jordan, and S. Ferrier. “Linking changes in community composition and function under climate change”. Ecological Applications 25.8 (2015), pp. 2132-2141. doi: 10.1890/14-2384.1.
NHNSW_2014_222Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. PLantNET: NSW flora online. 2014. url: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Schmidt_199322S. Schmidt. “Unpublished data: Compilation of mycorrhizal status data, University of Queensland”. 1993.
WAH_2023_212Western Australian Herbarium. Florabase—the Western Australian Flora.. accessed on 14 September, 2022.. 2023. url: https://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au/.
Wenk_202222E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant growth forms dataset”. 2022.
Collette_202111J. C. Collette and M. K. J. Ooi. “Distribution of seed dormancy classes across a fire-prone continent: effects of rainfall seasonality and temperature”. Annals of Botany 127.5 (2021), pp. 613-620. doi: 10.1093/aob/mcaa203.
Kew_2019_611Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Germination data from the Seed Information Database (SID) and Seed Bank Database. 2019. url: http://data.kew.org/sid/.
Wenk_202311E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant life history dataset, University of New South Wales, Sydney”. 2023.