White-thorn acacia

Vachellia constricta

Formerly Acacia constricta. Long-lived deciduous legume shrub or small tree rarely more than 12 ft. tall with long slender spines and slightly fragrant yellow flower globes, blooming May to September. Common and abundant, adapted to dry sandy to loamy soils, often in shallow caliche soils on slopes, washes, flats, mesas and riparian areas within arid and semiarid grassland and scrub communities in southwestern deserts; 1,000 to 6,000 ft. elevation. Slow to establish, but useful reclamation plant on mining soils and other disturbed sites. Vigorous resprouter after wildfire. Lightly browsed by livestock and wild ungulates. Provides cover and nesting for desert mammals and numerous birds and its beans are foraged by numerous types of wildlife. Attracts nectar-seeking pollinator insects such as butterflies and bees.