Exam 30: Plant Diversity II: The Evolution of Seed Plants

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. Animals that consume Brazil nuts derive nutrition mostly from tissue whose nuclei have how many chromosomes?

In onions (Allium), cells of the sporophyte have 16 chromosomes within each nucleus. Match the number of chromosomes present in each of the following onion tissues. How many chromosomes should be in an endosperm nucleus?

Compared to animal-pollinated plants, wind-pollinated angiosperms ________.

Use the information to answer the following question. Oviparous (egg-laying)animals have internal fertilization (sperm cells encounter eggs within the female's body). Yolk and/or albumen is (are)provided to the embryo, and a shell is then deposited around the embryo and its food source. Eggs are subsequently deposited in an environment that promotes their further development, or are incubated by one or both parents. The shell of a fertilized animal egg has what type of analog in angiosperms?

In terms of alternation of generations, the internal parts of the pollen grains of seed-producing plants are most similar to a ________.

Use the information to answer the following question. Scarlet gilia (Ipomopsis aggregata)usually has red flowers in an inflorescence of up to 250 flowers. In certain populations in the Arizona mountains, however, the flowers range from red to pink to white. In early summer, most (but not all)of the flowers were red. Six to eight weeks later, the same individual plants were still present; the flowers ranged from pink to white, and few red flowers were present. The major pollinators early in the season were two species of hummingbirds active during the day; they emigrated to lower elevations, and the major pollinator later in the season was a hawk moth (a type of moth). The hawk moth was most active at sunset and later, and it preferred light pink to white flowers after dark. When hummingbirds were present, more red flowers than white flowers produced fruit. When only hawk moths were present, more white flowers produced fruit (K. N. Paige and T. G. Whitham. 1985. Individual and population shifts in flower color by scarlet gilia: A mechanism for pollinator tracking. Science 227:315-17). Which of the following proposed controls would be most appropriate for the experiment when, late in the season, scientists painted some of the red flowers white?

Use the information to answer the following question. Scarlet gilia (Ipomopsis aggregata)usually has red flowers in an inflorescence of up to 250 flowers. In certain populations in the Arizona mountains, however, the flowers range from red to pink to white. In early summer, most (but not all)of the flowers were red. Six to eight weeks later, the same individual plants were still present; the flowers ranged from pink to white, and few red flowers were present. The major pollinators early in the season were two species of hummingbirds active during the day; they emigrated to lower elevations, and the major pollinator later in the season was a hawk moth (a type of moth). The hawk moth was most active at sunset and later, and it preferred light pink to white flowers after dark. When hummingbirds were present, more red flowers than white flowers produced fruit. When only hawk moths were present, more white flowers produced fruit (K. N. Paige and T. G. Whitham. 1985. Individual and population shifts in flower color by scarlet gilia: A mechanism for pollinator tracking. Science 227:315-17). Late in the season, when only hawk moths were present, researchers painted the red flowers white. What would you expect?

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. The large white part of a Brazil nut that people eat serves which of the following functions in nature?

Which of the following sex and generation combinations directly produces the fruit of angiosperms?

Among plants known as legumes (beans, peas, alfalfa, clover, for example)the seeds are contained in a fruit that is itself called a legume, better known as a pod. Upon opening such pods, it is commonly observed that some ovules have become mature seeds, whereas other ovules have not. Thus, which of the following statements is/are likely accurate?

Use the information to answer the following question. The cycads, a mostly tropical phylum of gymnosperms, evolved about 300 million years ago and were dominant forms during the age of the dinosaurs. Though their sperm are flagellated, their ovules are pollinated by beetles. These beetles get nutrition from the pollen and shelter from the microsporophylls. Upon visiting megasporophylls, the beetles transfer pollen to the exposed ovules. In cycads, pollen cones and seed cones are borne on different plants. Cycads synthesize neurotoxins, especially in the seeds, that are effective against most animals, including humans. On the Pacific island of Guam, large herbivorous bats called "flying foxes" commonly feed on cycad seeds, a potent source of neurotoxins. The flying foxes do not visit male cones. Consequently, which of the following statements should be accurate?

Use the information to answer the following question. Oviparous (egg-laying)animals have internal fertilization (sperm cells encounter eggs within the female's body). Yolk and/or albumen is (are)provided to the embryo, and a shell is then deposited around the embryo and its food source. Eggs are subsequently deposited in an environment that promotes their further development, or are incubated by one or both parents. The laying of eggs has what type of analog in angiosperms?

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. Entrepreneurs attempted, but failed, to harvest nuts from plantations grown in Southeast Asia. Attempts to grow Brazil nut trees in South American plantations also failed. In both cases, the trees grew vigorously, produced healthy flowers in profusion, but set no fruit. Consequently, what is the likely source of the problem?

The generative cell of male angiosperm gametophytes is haploid. This cell divides to produce two haploid sperm cells. What type of cell division does the generative cell undergo to produce these sperm cells?

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. Orchid bees are to Brazil nut trees as ________ are to pine trees.

In onions (Allium), cells of the sporophyte have 16 chromosomes within each nucleus. Match the number of chromosomes present in each of the following onion tissues. How many chromosomes should be in the nucleus of an egg within the embryo sac prior to fertilization?

One day, you go outside and see that the cars on the street are covered in a yellow "dust." Which of the following statements can be correctly applied to this "dust"?

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. Ecologists often build models to depict the relationships between organisms. In such models, an arrow is used to link two organisms in a relationship. The arrowhead is next to the organism that is affected. If the effect is positive, the arrow is labeled with (+), and if negative, then the label is (-). Which of the following models best illustrates the direct relationships of the Brazil nut tree and the other organisms associated with it?

In onions (Allium), cells of the sporophyte have 16 chromosomes within each nucleus. Match the number of chromosomes present in each of the following onion tissues. How many chromosomes should be in a generative cell nucleus?

Which of the following sex and generation combinations directly produces the pollen tube of angiosperms?