Mustad Hoof Nippers, Black, 12 in.

Twelve or 12 may refer to:

• 12 (number)
• December, the twelfth and final month of the year
• Dozen, a group of twelve.

Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have often been used to describe opposites such as good and evil, the Dark Ages versus the Age of Enlightenment, and night versus day. Since the Middle Ages, black has been the symbolic color of solemnity and authority, and for this reason it is still commonly worn by judges and magistrates.

Black was one of the first colors used by artists in Neolithic cave paintings. It was used in ancient Egypt and Greece as the color of the underworld. In the Roman Empire, it became the color of mourning, and over the centuries it was frequently associated with death, evil, witches, and magic. In the 14th century, it was worn by royalty, clergy, judges, and government officials in much of Europe. It became the color worn by English romantic poets, businessmen and statesmen in the 19th century, and a high fashion color in the 20th century. According to surveys in Europe and North America, it is the color most commonly associated with mourning, the end, secrets, magic, force, violence, fear, evil, and elegance.

Black is the most common ink color used for printing books, newspapers and documents, as it provides the highest contrast with white paper and thus is the easiest color to read. Similarly, black text on a white screen is the most common format used on computer screens. As of September 2019, the darkest material is made by MIT engineers from vertically aligned carbon nanotubes.

The hoof (pl.: hooves) is the tip of a toe of an ungulate mammal, which is covered and strengthened with a thick and horny keratin covering. Artiodactyls are even-toed ungulates, species whose feet have an even number of digits; the ruminants with two digits are the most numerous, e.g. giraffe, deer, bison, cattle, goats, gazelles, pigs, and sheep. The feet of perissodactyl mammals have an odd number of toes, e.g. the horse, the rhinoceros, and the tapir. Although hooves are limb structures primarily found in placental mammals, hadrosaurs such as Edmontosaurus possessed hoofed forelimbs. The marsupial Chaeropus also had hooves.

Nippers are young surf lifesavers, usually aged between 5 and 14 years old, in clubs across Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Unlike senior surf lifesavers, the majority of them do not patrol the beaches. The focus for Nippers tends to be on fun, and surf awareness.

Nippers learn about safety at the beach. They learn about dangers such as rocks, animals (e.g. the blue-ringed octopus), and surf conditions, such as rip currents, sandbars, and waves. Older Nippers also learn some basic first aid and may also learn CPR when they reach the age of 13.

When Nippers are thirteen years old they can complete their SRC (Surf Rescue Certificate), enabling them to patrol beaches and partake in Senior Competition.

Like their Senior counterparts, Nippers participate in regular competition against other Surf Lifesaving Clubs, at sports carnivals. Nippers are able to participate in a variety of Individual and Team events, including beach sprints, Flags, swimming and board races, relays, March Past, etc. Unlike Seniors, Nippers do not compete in surf ski or surfboat races, and they also use shorter surfboards than their Senior counterparts. Nippers start to compete when they are in the Under 8s age group. Boy nippers, unlike lifeguards who mostly wear board shorts, wear tight fit trunks or briefs.

The name and availability of the preschool-age group varies from club to club. These groups, sometimes called Tiny Tots or "Beach Worms", do not compete or learn first aid and surf awareness. Tiny Tots' activities include games, wading and paddling.