Exam 29: Plant Diversity I: How Plants Colonised Land

Breeuwer et al. (2008) measured the effect of different temperature regimes on the growth of different Sphagnum species. The growth of S. fuscum at four temperatures is shown. Use the information in the graph to answer the following question. Which of the following statements accurately reflects the effect of temperature on the growth of S. fuscum?

Bryophytes (non-vascular plants) ________.

A biology student hiking in a forest happens upon an erect, 15-centimetre-tall plant that bears microphylls and a strobilus at its tallest point. When disturbed, the cone emits a dense cloud of brownish dust. A pocket magnifying glass reveals the dust to be composed of tiny spheres with a high oil content. -Besides oil, what other chemical should be detected in substantial amounts upon chemical analysis of these small spheres?

Suppose an efficient conducting system evolved in a moss that could transport water and other materials as high as a tall tree. Which of the following statements about "trees" of such a species would be accurate?

Retaining the zygote on the living gametophyte of land plants ________.

Which of the following could occur only after plants moved from the oceans to land?

A student encounters a pondweed that appears to be a charophyte. Which of the following features would help the student determine whether the sample comes from a charophyte or from some other type of green alga?

A biology student hiking in a forest happens upon an erect, 15-centimetre-tall plant that bears microphylls and a strobilus at its tallest point. When disturbed, the cone emits a dense cloud of brownish dust. A pocket magnifying glass reveals the dust to be composed of tiny spheres with a high oil content. -This student has probably found a ________.

Arrange the following terms from most inclusive to least inclusive.

What is an accurate statement about the genus Sphagnum?

According to the fossil record, plants colonised terrestrial habitats ________.

How could you determine if a plant is heterosporous?

Why have biologists hypothesised that the first land plants had a low, sprawling growth habit?

Breeuwer et al. (2008) measured the effect of different temperature regimes on the growth of different Sphagnum species. The growth of S. fuscum at four temperatures is shown. Use the information in the graph to answer the following question. What would you expect to happen to the geographic range of S. fuscum as the temperature of Earth warms?

In the Great Australian Desert, rainfall averages about 30 centimetres per year. Yet, it is not uncommon when hiking in this extremely arid zone to encounter mosses and ferns. One such plant is called "flower of stone". It is not a flowering plant, nor does it produce seeds. Under arid conditions, its leaflike structures curl up. However, when it rains, it unfurls its leaves, which form a bright green rosette on the desert floor. Consequently, it is sometimes called the "resurrection plant". At first glance, it could be a fern, a true moss, or a spike moss. -Which of the following characteristics is (are) possessed in common by true mosses, ferns, and spike mosses, and therefore becomes useless at helping to determine to which of these groups "flower of stone" belongs?

The coal and oil that we currently use as fuel sources ________.

If you were asked to design a bryophyte that could be successful in a bare, moist area, which of the following possible adaptations would you include?

Compared to nonvascular plants, the ancient relatives of vascular plants ________.

Liverworts, hornworts, and mosses are grouped together as bryophytes. Besides not having vascular tissue, what do they all have in common?

The 1-metre height attainable by Dawsonia moss is at the upper end of the size range reached by mosses. What accounts for the relative tallness of Dawsonia?