Vachellia hockii

Tilcayo Cats original · Plants · Sources and editorial assessment · Originals retention rule

Vachellia hockii is a shrub or small tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, found across tropical Africa and in the southwestern Arabian Peninsula. It was formerly called Acacia hockii; the combination in Vachellia dates from 2010.

Appearance and habitat

The West African flora describes reddish-brown bark and deep yellow flowers. The narrow seed pods are commonly about 5–14 centimetres long, sometimes with a fine covering of hairs. Their flattened, smooth seeds are olive-brown and roughly elliptical.

The species grows in woodland, wooded grassland and bushland. In West Africa it is recorded particularly on rocky hills in relatively moist savanna. The East African flora gives a wide regional elevation range, from sea level to about 2,300 metres, and includes both deciduous and partly evergreen bushland among its habitats.

Fire and regeneration

Experiments in Uganda's Lake Mburo National Park during 1997–1998 examined the effects of fire, cutting and browsing on several acacia species. The resulting doctoral study reported that low-intensity fires stimulated germination of A. hockii. Frequent burning could prevent the accumulation of enough plant material to support more intense fires, and this pattern favoured the species in the study area.

Many A. hockii individuals nevertheless remained in the smaller height classes. Sprouts of this species flowered in the season following the experimental treatments, whereas sprouts of the other tested species did not. The findings show how fire intensity and regrowth interact locally; they do not establish that every fire benefits the plant or that the species is expanding throughout its range.