those little helicopter seed things, where you throw them, they spin down. what are those called actually?

Question

you know kids just love throwing them in the air and watch them spin down like helicopters... and they are seeds.... what are they?!

Answer 1

The proper horticultural name for maple seeds are "Samara".

Answer 2

They are samaras, although they are more often called helicopters or maple keys.

Samara (fruit)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A samara is a type of fruit in which a flattened wing of fibrous, papery tissue develops from the ovary wall. A samara is a simple dry fruit and indehiscent (not opening along a seam). The shape of a samara enables the wind to carry the seed away from the parent tree:

* The seed can be in the centre of the wing, as in the elms (genus Ulmus) and the hoptree (Ptelea trifoliata).
* The seed can be on one side, with the wing extending to the other side, making the seed spiral as it falls, as in the maples (genus Acer) and ashes (genus Fraxinus).

A samara is sometimes called a key and is often referred to as a helicopter or whirligig or a polynose.

Answer 3

They are maple seeds.

Answer 4

they are maple tree seeds