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Acer saccharum
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<p><i>Acer saccharum</i>, the sugar maple, is a species of <a href="/facts/Flowering_plant/E5eGYIvY">flowering plant</a> in the <a href="/facts/Soapberry/mz2Tm6Mz">soapberry</a> and <a href="/facts/Lychee/gTcxGX4Y">lychee</a> family <a href="/facts/Sapindaceae/TPlTCg7T">Sapindaceae</a>. It is native to the hardwood forests of eastern <a href="/facts/Canada/cWWFM8oc">Canada</a> and the eastern United States. Sugar maple is best known for being the primary source of <a href="/facts/Maple_syrup/wm7P1fFM">maple syrup</a> and for its brightly colored fall foliage. It may also be called "rock maple," "sugar tree," "sweet maple," or, particularly in reference to the wood, "hard maple," "<a href="/facts/Bird%2527s_eye_figure/qqTjUt5E">birds-eye maple</a>," or "curly maple," the last two being specially <a href="/facts/Figure_(wood)/d1Cwn6Fh">figured</a> lumber. </p>