Evolution of Plants and Fungi

Flashcards covering the evolution of plants, terrestrial adaptations, plant structures like roots, shoots, leaves, vascular tissue, and reproductive adaptations. Also covered are major plant groups (bryophytes, ferns, gymnosperms, and angiosperms), key evolutionary events like the origin of seeds and flowers, and concepts like alternation of generations.

Plant

A multicellular eukaryote that carries out photosynthesis and has adaptations for living on land.

Cuticle and Stomata

Structural adaptations that reduce water loss and regulate gas exchange in plants.

Roots

Organs that anchor the plant in soil and absorb water and minerals.

Shoots

Organ systems consisting of photosynthetic leaves supported by stems.

Mycorrhizae

Symbiotic associations of fungi and roots that enlarge the root's functional surface area.

Leaves

The main photosynthetic organs of most plants.

Stomata

Microscopic pores on the leaf surface that facilitate the exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen.

Cuticle

A waxy layer covering leaves and other aerial parts of plants, helping the plant retain water.

Vascular Tissue

A network of tube-shaped cells that branch throughout the plant, transporting water, minerals, and sugars.

Lignin

Chemical compound that hardens the cell walls of vascular tissue, providing structural support.

Protected Embryo

Internal fertilization, with sperm and egg combining within a moist chamber on the female plant.

Bryophytes

Nonvascular plants, such as mosses, that lack vascular tissue.

Ferns

Seedless vascular plants that have flagellated sperm and require water for fertilization.

Gymnosperms

Vascular plants with naked seeds, typically cone-bearing trees.

Angiosperms

Flowering plants that bear seeds within protective chambers called ovaries.

Spore

A haploid cell that can develop into a new individual without fusing with another cell.

Alternation of Generations

A type of life cycle in plants in which the gametophyte and sporophyte generations take turns producing each other.

Gametophyte

The green, spongelike plant that is the more obvious form of moss.

Sporophyte

The stalk with a capsule at its tip that grows out of a gametophyte in mosses.