helicopter seed
Maple's whirling offspring
A helicopter seed is a winged seed that spins as it falls, slowing its descent and allowing wind to carry it farther from the parent tree.
The papery wing creates rotation like a helicopter rotor.
Maple trees produce the most familiar examples, technically called samaras: Kids love throwing helicopter seeds into the air and watching them spiral down.
- samaraWinged botanical dispersal unit
- maple keyWinged seed pod
- mapleSap-yielding hardwood tree
- wingLimb enabling flight
- boxelderNorth American maple species
air resistance · tulip tree · lift · angular momentum · silver maple · whirligig · spinner · rotorcraft · paper airplane · terminal velocity · autogyro · ash · sycamore · hornbeam · elm · pericarp · falling leaf · nature walk
- tree seedsacorn, acorns, beechnut, walnut, chestnut
- Maplesmaple, red maple, sugar maple, silver maple, Japanese maple
- seed headsdandelion puff, milkweed pod, sunflower head, cattail, poppy pod
helicopter seeddandelion puff
Dispersal stage of weed
dandelion seed · pappus · thistledown · thistle seed · acorn
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