Acer nigrum

Acer nigrum
Illustration from 1913's Illustrated flora of the northern states and Canada
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Sapindales
Family:	Sapindaceae
Genus:	Acer
Species:	A. nigrum
Binomial name
Acer nigrum F.Michx.

Acer nigrum (Black maple) is a species of maple closely related to A. saccharum (sugar maple), and treated as a subspecies of it by some authors, as Acer saccharum subsp. nigrum.

Identification can be confusing due to the tendency of the two species to form hybrids. The simplest and most accurate method for distinguishing between the two trees is the generally three-lobed leaves of the black maple versus the generally five-lobed leaves of the sugar maple. The leaves of the black maple also tend to have a "droopy" appearance. Other differences that are not as pronounced include darker, more deeply grooved bark, slightly smaller seeds, and thicker petioles. Hybrids are intermediate in their characteristics.

The geographic range of A. nigrum is slightly more limited than the sugar maple, encompassing much of the Midwestern United States, portions of the Eastern United States, and the extreme southeast of Canada in southern Ontario.

This species is used similarly to the A. saccharum, for timber and landscaping, and for maple syrup production.

External links

• Winter ID pictures
• Interactive Distribution Map of Acer nigrum