Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
Valued for its brilliant fall color, red maple also provides a wide range wildlife benefits. It is an important early source of pollen and nectar for native bees and honeybees, it provides seeds for small mammals and is a home for cavity nesters including squirrels, woodpeckers, wood ducks, chickadees and nuthatches. Red maple is common along forested lakes, rivers and streams where its combination of a tap root and fibrous roots stabilize shorelines.