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Japanese Maple🍁
Acer palmatum
イロハモミジ
A deciduous small tree that epitomizes autumn in Japan. Characterized by palmately 5-7 lobed leaves that turn brilliant red, orange, and yellow in autumn. Widely found in gardens, parks, and mountains, with numerous cultivars. The name reportedly derives from a children's game of counting leaf lobes with the old Japanese alphabet 'i-ro-ha-ni-ho-he-to.'
Identification Points
- ✓Leaves are palmately 5-7 lobed with pointed lobe tips
- ✓Turns red to orange in autumn
- ✓Paired samaras (propeller-shaped winged fruits)
- ✓Opposite leaf arrangement
Habitat
Mountain woodlands, gardens, parks
Season
April (flowers); October to November (autumn foliage)
3D Specimen Model
Kyushu University, Shikano Lab (CC0)
View on Sketchfab→Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Leaf arrangement
Opposite
Leaf type
Compound
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf dissection
Dissected
Leaf shape
Palmate
Growth form
Tree
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Petal count
5 petals
Petal fusion
Free
Habitat
Mountain
Ovary position
Superior
Phylogenetic Positionムクロジ科 →
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Sapindales > Sapindaceae
Divergence Era
Late Cretaceous to Paleogene
Evolution Notes
The samaras (winged fruits) of Acer spin like propellers as they fall, a form specialized for wind dispersal.
View on evolution timeline →Sources & References
AI-generated, needs verification