A rigid, prickly roughly rounded shrub rarely over 1 m high, to 2 m wide. Branchlets angular, ribbed when young, pubescent with minute antrorse hairs plus some short stout hairs on a pustular base, sometimes slightly resinous. Stipules persistent, spinose, straight or slightly recurved, to 1.5 mm long, with a thickened flange surrounding base of phyllode. 

<P>Phyllodes sessile, perpendicular, rigid, straight or slightly recurved, compressed, 5-17 (-23) mm long, 1-2 mm wide, distinctly 6-veined (one on each margin and two on each face) with veins strongly raised in well defined ridges, abruptly tapered into a rigid mucro 1-2 mm long, base swollen and articulate; pulvinus reduced; gland in a slot at the base of the upper vein. 

<P>Inflorescence simple, axillary. Peduncles 1 rarely 2 per node, 5-7 mm long, minutely appressed pubescent. Flower-heads globular, 16-20-flowered, golden-yellow, 4-6 mm diam. Flowers 5-merous. 

<P>Legumes often persisting as a tangled mass, linear, undulate and irregularly bent or folded 3.5-9.0 cm long, 2-3 mm wide, sparsely pubescent towards base, slightly raised over seeds, scarcely constricted. Seeds longitudinal 2.5-3.5 mm long, 1.5-2 mm wide, aril apical, white ~3-2/3 length of seed; funicle small, filiform.