hornworts
Small non-vascular plants
Hornworts are small, primitive plants that grow in moist habitats worldwide.
They belong to one of the three groups of bryophytes, alongside mosses and liverworts.
The name refers to their distinctive horn-shaped reproductive structures that rise from a flat, green body.
Like other bryophytes, hornworts lack true roots and vascular tissue.
Undifferentiated vegetative body
- gametophyteHaploid reproductive generation
- sporesAsexual reproductive bodies
- columellaSmall central supporting shaft
- mucilageViscous plant-derived adhesive
Photosynthesis-performing cell structures
- stomataMicroscopic plant pores
- cuticleDead skin at nail base
- chlorophyllLight-harvesting plant pigment
- photosynthesisLight-to-sugar conversion in plants
Photosynthetic bacteria producing oxygen
- nitrogen-fixingConverting N₂ to ammonia
- colonizationForeign territorial takeover
- mutualisticBeneficial to both parties
- blue-green algaePhotosynthetic prokaryotes in water
Water-saturated terrain
- moist soilEarth with water content
- temperateMild, avoiding extremes
- tropicalOf hot, humid regions
- epiphyteNon-parasitic botanical hitchhiker
streambanks · forest floor · pioneer species · humidity · microhabitat · terrestrial
Geologic period, 419-359 million years ago
- phylogenyEvolutionary relationships among organisms
- ancestralOf one's forebears
- basalOf the foundation
- divergenceSeparation from common origin
fossil record · paleobotany · colonization · ancient lineage · sister group
thallus
Undifferentiated vegetative body
- gametophyteHaploid reproductive generation
- sporesAsexual reproductive bodies
- columellaSmall central supporting shaft
mucilage · capsule · foot · seta · meristem · liverworts · mosses
chloroplasts
Photosynthesis-performing cell structures
- stomataMicroscopic plant pores
- cuticleDead skin at nail base
- chlorophyllLight-harvesting plant pigment
photosynthesis · cell walls · plastids · pigments · carotenoids
cyanobacteria
Photosynthetic bacteria producing oxygen
- nitrogen-fixingConverting N₂ to ammonia
- colonizationForeign territorial takeover
- mutualisticBeneficial to both parties
wetlands
Water-saturated terrain
- moist soilEarth with water content
- temperateMild, avoiding extremes
- tropicalOf hot, humid regions
epiphyte · streambanks · forest floor · pioneer species · humidity · microhabitat · terrestrial
Devonian
Geologic period, 419-359 million years ago
- phylogenyEvolutionary relationships among organisms
- ancestralOf one's forebears
- basalOf the foundation
divergence · fossil record · paleobotany · colonization · ancient lineage · sister group
- organismsplants, animals, human, dog, fungi
- plantstree, plants, leaves, bluebonnet, trees
- moisture loversmosses, liverworts, ferns, sphagnum, peat moss
- photosynthesizersplants, plant, tree, green algae, fern
- plant evolutionseed plants, angiosperms, gymnosperms, seeds, pollen
- plant groupsangiosperms, gymnosperms, monocots, dicots, flowering plants
hornwortsflowering plants
Seed-bearing plants with blooms
angiosperms · ferns · gymnosperms · trees · seed plants