Plant Diversity I: How Plants Colonized Land

Flashcards for reviewing key concepts in plant diversity, focusing on the transition of plants from water to land, their adaptations, and the diversity among extant plant forms.

Bryophytes

Nonvascular plants that include liverworts, mosses, and hornworts.

Sporopollenin

A durable polymer that protects the zygotes in charophytes, spores in seedless plants, and pollen grains in seed plants.

Alternation of generations

A reproductive cycle in plants that alternates between a haploid gametophyte and diploid sporophyte.

Gametangia

Multicellular structures that produce gametes in plants, specifically in antheridia for sperm and archegonia for eggs.

Apical Meristems

Regions of continuously dividing cells at the tips of roots and shoots which allow for growth towards resources.

Cuticle

A waxy coating that prevents desiccation in plants, allowing for gas exchange through controlled openings called stomata.

Mycorrhizae

Mutualistic associations between fungi and plant roots that enhance water and mineral absorption.

Phloem

Type of vascular tissue that transports sugars and organic products throughout a plant.

Xylem

Vascular tissue responsible for transporting water and minerals from roots to other parts of the plant.

Megaphylls

Leaves with branched vascular systems found in Monilophytes and seed plants.

Microphylls

Leaves with a single vein, primarily found in Lycophytes.

Lycophytes

A group of seedless vascular plants that includes club mosses, spike mosses, and quillworts.

Monilophytes

A group of seedless vascular plants that includes ferns, horsetails, and whisk ferns.

Sori

Clusters of sporangia found on the underside of sporophylls in ferns.

Strobilus

A cone-like structure that contains clusters of sporophylls.