Plant Diversity and Adaptations Quiz

Plants have diverse species (nearly 300,000), primarily photosynthesizing, with cell walls containing cellulose. They exhibit indeterminate growth and reproduce sexually and asexually.

Land plants face desiccation (drying out), needing adaptations to conserve water in air.

Plants use chlorophyll in chloroplasts to capture sunlight's energy and make food.

Plants reproduce sexually with male (stamens) and female (pistils) sex organs.

Plants continue to grow and add mass throughout their lives, unlike animals with a fixed body size.

Adaptations to deal with land environments include water conservation strategies.

Water is essential for life, acting as a medium for chemical reactions in plant cells.

Drying out. A major challenge for land plants.

A plant life cycle with both haploid and diploid multicellular stages.

A life cycle with a dominant haploid stage.

A life cycle with a dominant diploid stage.

A life cycle with both haploid and diploid stages.

The haploid multicellular form that produces gametes of plants.

The diploid multicellular form in plants that produces spores through meiosis.

A reproductive sac in seedless plants that contains spores.

Plants that do not produce seeds in their life cycle.

Seedless nonvascular plants that produce only one type of spore.

Plants producing two different types of spores: microspores (small) and megaspores (large).

Smaller spores that develop into male gametophytes.

Larger spores that develop into female gametophytes.

Tough polymer in spore and pollen walls that resists degradation.

A crucial adaptation for land plants that involves shielding the vulnerable embryo from dehydration and other harmful environmental factors.

In both seedless and seed plants, the female gametophyte provides nutrition to the developing embryo. In seed plants, it also protects the embryo.

Specialized structures on the gametophytes of seedless plants where gametes are produced through mitosis.

The male gametangium that releases sperm in seedless plants.

The female gametangium where the egg cell is located and where the embryo develops.

A region of actively dividing cells at the tips of shoots and roots that allows plants to grow in length throughout their life.

A type of meristem that increases the diameter of stems and tree trunks.

Plants with a specialized system of tissues (xylem and phloem) for transporting water, nutrients, and sugars.

The vascular tissue responsible for transporting water and minerals from roots to the rest of the plant.

The vascular tissue responsible for transporting sugars, proteins, and other nutrients throughout the plant.

Underground structures that anchor the plant and absorb water and nutrients from the soil.

A symbiotic relationship between plant roots and fungi, where the fungus helps the plant absorb nutrients and water from the soil.

The primary photosynthetic organs of plants, responsible for capturing sunlight energy.

Cone-like structures that bear sporophylls and are responsible for reproduction.

Plants that have vascular tissue and true leaves, but reproduce via spores and need water for fertilization. They include club mosses, horsetails, ferns, and whisk ferns.

The earliest group of seedless vascular plants, characterized by small leaves called microphylls and a stem.

A group of seedless vascular plants with a single genus, known for their jointed stems.

Small, simple leaves found in club mosses.

An extinct group of plants that included large trees and swamp forests during the Carboniferous period. Horsetails are their modern-day survivors.

A geological period (359-299 million years ago) known for its extensive swamp forests of seedless vascular plants and the formation of coal deposits.

The sporophyte stage is the larger, more visible part of the plant life cycle in seedless vascular plants.

Desiccation, or drying out, is a major challenge for plants living on land. They have evolved adaptations to conserve water and prevent water loss from their aerial structures.

Cellulose is a structural polysaccharide found in the cell walls of plants. It provides strength and support to the plant's structure.

Plants face a number of challenges on land, but the most significant is preventing water loss. This constant risk of desiccation or drying out means plants need to conserve water.

Indeterminate growth in plants means that they do not have a predetermined final body size, unlike animals. They can continue to grow and expand their body mass until they die.

Plants have two types of gametes: eggs (female gametes) are larger and produced by pistils, while sperm (male gametes) are smaller and produced by stamens.

Specialized tissues in plants that efficiently transport water, nutrients, and sugars throughout the plant. These tissues consist of xylem and phloem.

Air provides much less support than water, so land plants evolved stronger structures like stems for support. This is why they have more rigid molecules in their stems compared to aquatic plants.

It's a specialized system of tissues that transports water and nutrients throughout a plant. Xylem transports water and minerals upward, while phloem transports food from photosynthesis throughout the plant.

It's a waxy, waterproof layer on the surface of leaves and stems that prevents water loss. Like applying sunscreen on a plant!

Stomata are tiny pores on leaves and stems. They regulate gas exchange – allowing carbon dioxide in for photosynthesis and releasing oxygen and water vapor. This is how plants breathe!

Plants produce poisonous compounds called secondary metabolites, like alkaloids. These compounds make them taste bad or even dangerous to eat, deterring animals.

It's a relationship where two species influence each other's evolution over long periods. For example, plants have evolved sweet and nutritious fruits to attract animals who help in seed dispersal.

Roots are essential for anchoring the plant in the soil, absorbing water from the soil, and taking up nutrients.

Early land plants grew close to the ground to avoid drying out, while later ones, like trees, developed stronger structures and vascular systems for transporting water and nutrients to grow tall.

An informal grouping of nonvascular plants that are the closest living relatives of early terrestrial plants.

The lack of lignin, a tough polymer found in vascular plant cell walls, makes bryophytes difficult to fossilize.

The haploid gametophyte stage is the dominant and most noticeable part of a bryophyte's life cycle.

Bryophytes lack specialized cells that conduct fluids like those found in vascular plants, and they generally lack lignin. They also have a dominant haploid gametophyte stage.

Bryophytes thrive in moist habitats, such as damp forests, tundra, and even some deserts.

Plants that possess vascular tissue (xylem and phloem) for transporting water and nutrients, but reproduce via spores. They include ferns, horsetails, and club mosses.

This geological period is characterized by the dominance of vast swampy forests filled with seedless vascular plants, which later formed coal deposits.

The diploid sporophyte stage is the dominant and more visible part of the plant life cycle in these plants.