Biol1002 Chapter 17

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?

Cutting the roots has damaged the xylem, so the plant can no longer take up water.

An experimental forest ecosystem is enclosed in a sealed greenhouse. The entire ecosystem, including the air and soil, is treated with an extremely potent fungicide that kills all fungal life stages including spores. What will probably happen next?

Dead organic matter will accumulate on the forest floor; plant growth will decline because of a lack of nutrients and the loss of mycorrhizal partners.

Which part of this figure represents the anther?

Structure A

Which type of reproduction is typical in molds?

asexual reproduction through the production of spores

Which of the following statements regarding ferns is true?

ferns have well-developed roots and rigid stems

Which of the following statements regarding fungi is false?

fungi can break down only plant material

The dominant stage of the moss life cycle is the

gametophyte

The stomata found on fossil plants can be a reliable way to measure past carbon dioxide levels. Normally, fossil plants with a high density of stomata indicate ________ carbon dioxide levels and fossil plants with only a few stomata indicate ________ carbon dioxide levels.

low; high

The ________ is the protective chamber that houses the ovule and later matures to become the fruit.

ovary

If fungi of the genus Cordyceps are ingested by insects, fruiting bodies from the fungi will form and erupt through the bodies of the insects and then kill the insect hosts. Since Cordyceps are using the insects as a host for growth and dispersal, these fungi are an example of

parasitic fungi

Which of the following features would you expect to see in the flowers of wind-pollinated grasses?

very simple flowers that produce massive quantities of pollen

According to this figure, at what time in the evolutionary history of plants did vascular systems likely first evolve?

425 mya

Suppose you wanted to test this hypothesis using sunflower plants. Which of the following would be the best procedure regarding the groups you use in your experiment?

Choose two equal-size groups of sunflower plants. One would be the experimental group and one would be the control group.

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

Diploid nuclei form, undergo meiosis, and produce haploid spores.

Which of the following statements correctly describes the alternation of generations in a plant life cycle?

Diploid sporophytes that produce spores by meiosis alternate with haploid gametophytes that produce gametes by mitosis.

Which of the following statements is true?

Gymnosperms have seeds that are not enclosed in a protective casing, while angiosperms have flowers that produce seeds with a protective casing.

Usable (liquid) water sources in the maritime Antarctic are directly related to air temperatures: the warmer the temperature, the more water becomes available for use by plants, fungi, and other living species. How would you predict this phenomenon would influence fungal biodiversity?

Increased usable water sources would promote increased means for fungi to grow and disperse.

Different kinds of mycorrhizae occur in different ecosystems. For example, as you walk up a mountain, you might find one type of mycorrhizae in lower regions and a second, different type of mycorrhizae in higher regions. Why are there mycorrhizae specific to certain ecosystems?

Mycorrhizae are adapted to the type of soil and the type of vegetation present.

Each dot on the figure represents a soil sample. Which of the following is an accurate conclusion about the data presented?

Soil fungal diversity is greatest in warmer climates.

Many flower traits are specifically attractive to a certain type of pollinator. For example, the scent of rotting flesh is attractive to certain flies and beetles but not to most other pollinators. What adaptive purpose is served by this kind of "niche marketing" of flowers to specific pollinators?

This adaptation helps to assure that pollen will be delivered to another flower of the same species. If less specialized pollinators are used, the odds are greater that pollen will wind up on the stigma of a different species.

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?

When the tomato rots, it drops to the ground and the seeds fall in the soil.

Which part of the life cycle does a pollen grain represent?

a male gametophyte

A comet orchid has creamy white-colored flowers and a characteristic "tail" that contains the flower's nectar. This orchid does not emit a scent during daylight hours but is aromatic at night. The comet orchid is most likely pollinated by

a nocturnal pollinator

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

basidiomycetes

Mosses belong to the group of plants known as the

bryophytes

Which of the following options correctly represents the most likely sequence of the evolution of plants, from earliest to most recent?

bryophytes, seedless vascular plants, gymnosperms, angiosperms

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 ________.

carbon dioxide; seed plants

The main causes of the loss of plant biodiversity include

deforestation by clear-cutting or burning of forests to create farmland.

Hallucinations, nervous spasms, and even death can result when humans consume grain infested with

ergots

Which of the following organisms has a dominant sporophyte generation and a free-living gametophyte generation?

fern

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

flagellated; chytrid

Fungi are found associated with the earliest plant fossils. Fungi may have helped plants become terrestrial by

forming associations to obtain water and minerals

The ripened ovary of a flower, which is adapted to disperse seeds, is called a/an

fruit

Which structure is found in angiosperms but not gymnosperms?

fruit

Corn, peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers all contain seeds and are derived from the ovary of a flowering plant. Therefore, in scientific terms, they are

fruits

Heterotrophic eukaryotes that digest their food externally and absorb the small molecules are referred to as

fungi

In a moss, most of the plants that we see are ________; in a fern, the most dominant stage is the ________.

gametophytes; sporophyte

Based on the results of this study, you can conclude that

gene mutations affecting petal color can contribute to speciation through a shift in pollinator species.

About 80% of plants have mycorrhizae linking them to

glomeromycetes.

The ancestors of land plants were probably ________ that lived in ________.

green algae similar to charophytes; coastal marshes or lake fringes

About 95% of all modern plant species

have a dominant sporophyte in their life cycle.

Ferns and mosses are similar because both

have flagellated sperm

A cocklebur is dispersed by ________, whereas most fleshy, edible fruits are eaten by animals that ________.

hitching rides on animals; defecate the intact seeds

Threadlike fungal filaments are called

hyphae

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.

hyphae ; symbiotic

What might scientists also predict to find in warmer environments based on the data in the figure?

increased rate of nutrient cycling in the soil

Old cemeteries (pre-1900) often have gravestones that often host many types of lichens. However, it is not impossible to find old cemeteries where lichens are entirely absent. Given what is known about lichens, an old cemetery without lichens probably

is close to a source of air pollution.

Usable (liquid) water sources in the maritime Antarctic are directly related to air temperatures. Suppose scientists observe climate cooling in the maritime Antarctic over a 10-year period. At the end of the 10 years, scientists revisit the same site to study effects of climate cooling. Considering temperature and water stress tolerance of these organisms, which would be most likely to continue surviving?

lichens

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

many pollinators have limited learning capacities and are most successful at obtaining food if they continue to visit the same type of flower after learning how to extract its nectar.

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

mycelium; hyphae

The intimate, mutually beneficial association formed between a fungus and the root of a plant is called a

mycorrhiza

In plants, the vascular tissue that consists of living cells that distribute sugars throughout the plant is called

phloem

Which of the following plants has a dominant sporophyte generation and a seed, but no fruit?

pine tree

Fungal diseases common in ________ include ________ and ________.

plants ; smuts ; rusts

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

pollen and seeds

Which of the following represents the male gametophyte of a conifer?

pollen grain

Which of the following characteristics tends to limit bryophytes and seedless vascular plants to habitats that are relatively moist?

presence of flagellated sperm

In this frigid Antarctic region, there is a thin soil layer that defrosts during the year. However, the rest of the soil in the region, called permafrost, stays frozen. Which of the following characteristics would best help plants to survive in this soil-poor climate?

shallow root systems that can grow in the active layer of soil and avoid the permafrost

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.

showy or scented flowers ; massive amounts of pollen

Which of the following would be the best evidence to demonstrate that mushrooms are living, reproducing organisms?

spore production and dispersal

Which of the following structures is an essential part of most fungal reproductive systems?

spores

The angiosperm plant we see represents the ________ generation, and the flower produces ________.

sporophyte ; gametophytes

In ferns, the ________ produces spores by ________ in ________.

sporophyte; meiosis; sporangia

The heterokaryotic phase of a fungal life cycle is a

stage in which hyphae contain two genetically different haploid nuclei.

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 ________.

stamens; stigma

Gas exchange in most land plants occurs through structures called

stomata

Which plant would you expect to have fewer stomata, and why?

the first type, because plants in arid environments need to conserve as much water as possible

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

the formation of coal

The ________ represents the sporophyte generation of a conifer, and the ________ produces gametophytes.

tree; cone

A maple tree's seeds occur in pairs that are enclosed and attached to flat "wings" that are made of a papery tissue. The wings' shape allows them to spin in the air as they fall from the tree; this unusual motion has earned them the nickname "helicopter seeds." Maple tree seeds are most successful when they are dispersed by

wind

A mushroom is

an aboveground reproductive structure connected to a mycelium.

What kind of entity is a lichen?

an association between a fungus and cyanobacteria or green algae

The majority of plant species today are

angiosperms

Corn, rice, wheat, fleshy fruits such as apples and berries, and many spices are all produced by

angiosperms.

The evolution of easily modified flower colors that can make plants attractive to animals was an important factor in angiosperm evolution because

animals are more effective at delivering pollen to other flowers than is the wind.

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

animals; rapid fertilization and seed production

In angiosperms, pollen grains develop in the ________ and land on the ________.

anther; stigma

A growth-producing region of cell division, known as a/an ________, is found near the tips of stems and roots.

apical meristem

The loss of plant biodiversity, including the wild relatives of crop species, is harmful because these wild relatives

are a source of genetic diversity that could be used to modify or bolster existing crops.

Plants dependent on night-flying (nocturnal) pollinators typically have flowers that

are large, light-colored, and highly scented

In all plants, the zygote and earliest stages of the developing embryo are

attached to and nourished by the parent plant

In plants, the vascular tissue made of dead cells that transport water and minerals from the roots is called

xylem

You designed and performed an experiment that measured CO2 gas exchange levels at the upper side of a sunflower leaf (fewer stomata) and the bottom side of a sunflower leaf (greater stomata). After collecting and analyzing your data, you conclude that there was not a significant difference in CO2 gas exchange between the two sides of the leaf. Which of the following possibly explains this finding?

The difference in the density of stomata on the two leaf surfaces is not likely due to an adaptation related to gas exchange regulation.

Mycorrhizal fungi are sometimes purposely introduced to new areas of land that are used for growing plants for commercial uses (e.g., landscaping, crop production, timber production). What would be the benefit of doing this?

The fungi help facilitate horticulture, agriculture, and forestry.

The type of life cycle seen in plants is called

alternation of generations