Exam 17: The Evolution of Plant and Fungal Diversity

As fungi play important roles in ecosystem processes as decomposers and symbiont partners, scientists are interested in understanding how global climate change may affect fungal diversity. In 2007-2008, scientists visited the maritime Antarctic, an area of the Southern Hemisphere that is noted to be warming the fastest, to conduct a survey of fungal diversity along a climatic gradient (the most prevalent weather conditions of a region along an incline). Twenty-nine soil samples were taken along the gradient. Fungal diversity was measured in operational taxonomic units (OTUs); one OTU = one cluster, or group, of organisms. Here is a portion of the data collected: Source: Newsham, K. K., Hopkins, D. W., Carvalhais, L. C., Fretwell, P. T., Rushton, S. P., O'Donnell, A. G., & Dennis, P. G. (n.d.). Relationship between soil fungal diversity and temperature in the maritime Antarctic. Nature Climate Change, 6, 182-186. -What might scientists also predict to find in warmer environments based on the data in the figure?

One of the factors that helps animal-pollinated flowering plants transfer pollen to plants of the same species is that

Threadlike fungal filaments are called

Which of the following occurs in the sexual reproduction phase of the fungus life cycle?

Most familiar types of fungi including mushrooms, puffballs, and shelf fungi are examples of

The incomplete decay of dead plants during the Carboniferous period led to

Suppose you have two small plants. You cut the roots off of one and then place both plants in a jar of red dye. After 20 minutes, the roots, stem, and leaves of the plant with roots have turned pink. The plant without roots has not changed color at all. Why has the plant without roots remained a normal, green color?

During the Carboniferous period, photosynthesis in immense swamp forests removed ________ from the atmosphere, which produced a drier, cooler global climate and promoted the success of ________.

Red maples and other wind-pollinated plants invest relatively little in producing ________ but must invest a great deal in producing ________ to achieve good pollination rates.

To cross-fertilize flowers A and B, one would first remove flower A's immature ________ and later transfer pollen from flower B to flower A's ________.

Which of the following statements is true?

Two characteristics shared by gymnosperms and angiosperms that are absent from earlier plant groups and represent key adaptations to life on dry land are

The last common ancestor of animals and fungi was probably ________, like the spores of ________ fungi.

As fungi play important roles in ecosystem processes as decomposers and symbiont partners, scientists are interested in understanding how global climate change may affect fungal diversity. In 2007-2008, scientists visited the maritime Antarctic, an area of the Southern Hemisphere that is noted to be warming the fastest, to conduct a survey of fungal diversity along a climatic gradient (the most prevalent weather conditions of a region along an incline). Twenty-nine soil samples were taken along the gradient. Fungal diversity was measured in operational taxonomic units (OTUs); one OTU = one cluster, or group, of organisms. Here is a portion of the data collected: Source: Newsham, K. K., Hopkins, D. W., Carvalhais, L. C., Fretwell, P. T., Rushton, S. P., O'Donnell, A. G., & Dennis, P. G. (n.d.). Relationship between soil fungal diversity and temperature in the maritime Antarctic. Nature Climate Change, 6, 182-186. -Each dot on the figure represents a soil sample. Which of the following is an accurate conclusion about the data presented?

The plant genus Pinus reaches optimal growth when it grows with the fungal genus Suillusis. The ________ of the fungus give Pinus water and mineral nutrients, while Pinus gives the fungus sugars and organic macromolecules. Pinus and Suillusis have a ________ relationship.

A leaf with a higher density of stomata can take up more CO₂ and release more water than a leaf with a lower density of stomata. -Consider two plant types: 1. Plants that grow in arid (dry) environments 2) Plants that grow in moist (e.g., wetland) environments Which plant would you expect to have fewer stomata, and why?

Tomato seeds are often consumed by birds or other organisms and then deposited through feces. However, when tomatoes rot on the vine, organisms may not consume them. How would tomato seeds likely disperse in this situation?

Fungal diseases common in ________ include ________ and ________.

Fungi contact and absorb food through the ________, a branching network of ________.

Some of the unique adaptations of angiosperms include their beneficial relationships with ________ and their relatively ________.