Some are shrubby, but most are medium to large leaves. All have palm-shaped, simple, opposite leaves except box-elders. Their typically paired, winged fruits are eaten by birds, by squirrels, and by other small animals.
Maples, next to Oaks, are the best-known broad-leaved trees. Maples have world-wide distribution in temperate lands. Some 60 to 80 species are known; about a quarter of them are found in North America.
