Our 'Waddi Tree'

The ‘Waddi Tree’

The Wadi, Waddi, Waddy-Wood, Birdsville Wattle, Aratara (to the Arunda People) Kurriyapiri or Red Ochre Flower (to the Pitti Pitti People) and Arripar (to the Arrernte People) “Acacia Peuce” is one of the rarest and most striking trees that grows in the Australian Arid Zone. The trees can grow to be 20m tall and live up to 500 years.

Found in only three locations worldwide all of which are in and around the Simpson Desert in Central Australia. It survives at ‘Old Andado Station’ on a stony wind-swept plain in the Northern Territory and at Boulia and Birdsville in Queensland where the average rainfall is a meagre 150mm per year.

Waddy-Wood is an extremely hard wood that was traditionally used to make digging tools and weapons by the local Aboriginal people. It has also been used for outback fencing.

The Waddi Tree is endangered and is threatened by fires, lightning strikes, wood cutting and grazing cattle. The introduced, now feral animals namely camels, horses and rabbits roaming the area are also a problem.

These photographs were taken by my father, Murray Upton in September 1972 near North Bore on Old Andado Station on the Western Edge of the Simpson Desert. John Feehan, a fellow entomologist who was part of this expedition found a juvenile Waddi and drove a stake into the stony wind swept ground in order to identify and then monitor it's growth over the years. We plan to head out to Old Andado Station to find that tree.

You can camp at 'Old Andado Station' around 30km from this stand of trees. The facilities are clean and tidy and well cared for.

Photos by Murray Upton 1972, 'Old Andado Station'

1972-09-28 The John Feehan Waddi Tree Ol

1972-09 070a Wadi Trees Andado North Bor

1972-09 068 'The Wadi Camp North Bore An

1972-09 069 Wadi Trees Nth bore Andado N

1972-09 070b Seedling Wadi Tree North Bo

1972-09 065 A wadi grove North Bore Anda