Vachellia nilotica
(L.) P.J.H.Hurter & Mabb. · speciesAt a glance
Sources13 archives
Databases and archives Vachellia nilotica's data was compiled from.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation14 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility9 425 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI59 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics82 specimens↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
GRIN TaxonomyUSDA-ARSdistribution & uses↗
CCDBChromosome Counts DB · Tel Aviv U.genome & karyotype↗
GoaTGenomes on a Tree · Sangergenome & karyotype↗
PloiDBPloidy Databasegenome & karyotype
WikidataWikimedia Foundationstructured facts↗
Catalogue of LifeCOLtaxonomy↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗Every layer below draws on the sources above — open one to explore it, or use ← → to move between tabs.
Vachellia nilotica, more commonly known as Acacia nilotica, and by the vernacular names of gum arabic tree, babul, thorn mimosa, Egyptian acacia or thorny acacia, is a flowering tree in the family Fabaceae. It is native to Africa, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. It is also considered a 'weed of national significance' and an invasive species of concern in Australia, as well as a noxious weed by the federal government of the United States.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Size & morphology15
Life cycle & reproduction10
Diet & foraging1
Habitat & environment12
Physiology & chemistry9
Compounds documented for Vachellia nilotica across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
Compound class profile5 classes
Documented compounds39 total
| Compound | Class | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| (2R,3S)-heptacosane-1,2,3-triol | present | LOTUS | |
| (3R,4aS,4bS,7S,8aR,10aR)-2-ethenyl-3,7-dihydroxy-1,4b,8,8-tetramethyl-4a,5,6,7,8a,9,10,10a-octahydro-3H-phenanthren-4-one | present | LOTUS | |
| (3S)-17-[(5S)-5-ethyl-6-methylheptan-2-yl]-10,13-dimethyl-2,3,4,7,8,9,11,12,14,15,16,17-dodecahydro-1H-cyclopenta[a]phenanthren-3-ol | present | LOTUS | |
| (R)-naringenin | present | LOTUS | |
| 1,2-Benzenediol | present | LOTUS | |
| 1,6-di-O-Galloylglucose | present | LOTUS | |
| 1D-myo-inositol 1,2,3,4,5,6-hexakisphosphate | present | LOTUS | |
| 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-3,4-dihydro-2H-1-benzopyran-3,5,7-triol | present | LOTUS | |
| 2-Octadecenoic acid | present | LOTUS | |
| 3,8-dihydroxy-2,10-dimethoxy-5H-isochromeno[4,3-b]chromen-7-one | present | LOTUS |
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Vachellia nilotica has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
The complete instruction manual Vachellia nilotica carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Genome sizehow big the whole instruction manual is
Measured in base pairs (bp) — the individual letters of DNA (human ≈ 3.2 Gb, a bacterium a few million). The chart places this genome on a logarithmic scale — each step to the right is ten times bigger — among reference organisms. Across species a bigger genome loosely tracks with larger cells, slower growth and lower-energy lifestyles (powered flight favours small genomes) — yet it does not imply more genes or a more advanced organism (the long-standing C-value paradox).
Chromosomes & ploidyhow the DNA is packaged
2n is the full chromosome count in a normal body cell; n is a gamete (egg or sperm), which carries half. Ploidy is how many complete chromosome sets each cell holds — 2× (diploid) is typical for animals, while higher levels (polyploidy) are common in plants. Click any value below to see the underlying records and sources.
2n 5212×CCDB · ipcn-api-dl · CCDB · book-indian_vol1 · CCDB · book-fedorov +2
2n 264×GoaT · Kew Plant DNA C-values Database · CCDB · ipcn-api-dl · CCDB · book-indian_vol1 +1
2n 443×CCDB · book-indian_vol1 · CCDB · book-fedorov · CCDB · Cave1958
2n 1041×CCDB · kew
n 261×CCDB · ipcn-api-dl
diploid1×GoaT · Kew Plant DNA C-values Database
polyploid inferred1×PloiDB · genus-scale
How far back this lineage goes — and how we know. Everything here is measured in Ma, short for “mega-annum”: millions of years ago. The chart reads left to right like a calendar of the Earth, from the deep past on the left to today at the right edgetop to bottom like a core drilled through the Earth, from the deep past at the top down to today at the bottom.
At a glance
When this lineage existed
How to read this: the coloured strip along the bottomdown the left is the geological calendar — the standard epochs (Pliocene, Pleistocene…) every museum uses, shown so you can see which chapter of Earth's history this lineage lived in. This lineage is a young one, so the strip is zoomed in to epochs — the finer subdivisions inside a period. The orange marker is the DNA clock: DNA accumulates mutations at a roughly steady rate, so comparing this species' DNA with its relatives estimates when the lineage split off — independently of any fossil.
Record type9 425 records
Origin
Range
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Holding institutions21 of 41 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
| Institution | Specimens |
|---|---|
| Brisbane, AU | 123 |
| Museo Entomologico de Leonlocation not on record | 32 |
| Palmerston, AU | 20 |
| Baroda, IN | 13 |
| Adelaide, AU | 12 |
| James Cook Townsvillelocation not on record | 10 |
| Department of Plant Resources, National Herbarium and Plant Laboratorieslocation not on record | 10 |
| Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, United States National Herbariumlocation not on record | 7 |
| Canberra, AU | 6 |
| Puerto Ayora, EC | 6 |
| Government College University Lahore, Dr. Sultan Ahmad Herbariumlocation not on record | 4 |
| Kensington, AU | 4 |
| Pondicherry, IN | 3 |
| Edward O. Wilson Biodiversity Laboratory, Gorongosa NPlocation not on record | 3 |
| Florida Museum of Natural History- Zoology, Paleontology & Paleobotanylocation not on record | 3 |
| Sri Ramaswamy Memorial Universitylocation not on record | 2 |
| Armidale, AU | 2 |
| University of Stellenboschlocation not on record | 2 |
| Bronx, US | 2 |
| Altos de Pipe, VE | 2 |
| National Institute of Biological Resourceslocation not on record | 2 |
| Pretoria, ZA | 2 |
| University of Johannesburg, Department of Botany and Plant Biotechnologylocation not on record | 2 |
| Saint Louis, US | 2 |
| Gujarat Biodiversity Gene Banklocation not on record | 2 |
| Hobart, AU | 2 |
| Durban, ZA | 2 |
| Smithfield, AU | 2 |
| QCNElocation not on record | 1 |
| University of Guelph, OAC Herbariumlocation not on record | 1 |
| Moscow State Universitylocation not on record | 1 |
| St. Augustine, TT | 1 |
| SNJB's KKHA Arts, SMGL Commerce & SPHJ Science College Chandwad, Dist. Nashik, Maharashtra, India. 423101.location not on record | 1 |
| Mount Annan, AU | 1 |
| University of Johannesburglocation not on record | 1 |
| UNIVASFlocation not on record | 1 |
| University of Hargeisalocation not on record | 1 |
| Dekalb, US | 1 |
| Loja, EC | 1 |
| Kew, GB | 1 |
| Laboratorio de Ictiologialocation not on record | 1 |
Where the DNA of Vachellia nilotica was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Where its DNA was found
How strong is each trace?
Modelled climatemodelled
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.