A sporeling is a young plant or fungus produced by a germinated spore, similar to a seedling derived from a germinated seed. In Biology, a spore is a reproductive structure that is adapted for dispersal and surviving for extended periods of time in unfavorable conditions A seedling is a young plant Sporophyte developing out of a plant embryo from a Seed. A seed (in some plants referred to as a kernel) is a small embryonic Plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat usually with some stored They occur in algae, fungi, lichens, bryophytes and seedless vascular plants. Algae ( sing. alga are a large and diverse group of simple typically Autotrophic organisms ranging from Unicellular to Multicellular forms A fungus (ˈfʌŋgəs is a eukaryotic Organism that is a member of the kingdom Fungi (ˈfʌndʒaɪ Lichens (ˈlaɪkən or /lɪtʃən/ are symbiotic associations of a Fungus (the mycobiont with a photosynthetic partner (the photobiont also known as Bryophytes are all Embryophytes ('land Plants) that are non-vascular: they have tissues and enclosed reproductive systems but they lack Vascular tissue The pteridophytes are Vascular plants (plants with Xylem and Phloem) that neither Flower nor produce Seeds hence they are called vascular
Sporeling development
Most spores germinate by first producing a germ-rhizoid or holdfast followed by a germ tube emerging from the opposite end. Rhizoids are a structure in plants and fungi that functions like a root in support or absorption A holdfast is a Root -like structure that anchors aquatic Sessile organisms such as Seaweed, other sessile Algae, stalked The germ tube develops into the hypha, protonema or thallus of the gametophyte. A hypha (plural hyphae) is a long branching filamentous cell of a Fungus, and also of unrelated Actinobacteria. A protonema (plural protonemata) is a thread-like chain of cells that forms the earliest stage (the Haploid phase of a Bryophyte For the chronologer/historian occasionally mentioned in the works of early Christian writers see Thallus (historian. In Plants and Algae that undergo Alternation of generations, a gametophyte is the multicellular structure or phase that is Haploid, containing
In seedless vascular plants such as ferns and lycopodiophyta, the term "sporeling" refers to the young sporophyte growing on the gametophyte. A fern is any one of a group of about 20000 Species of Plants classified in the phylum or division Pteridophyta, also known as Filicophyta The Division Lycopodiophyta (sometimes called Lycophyta) is a tracheophyte subdivision of the Kingdom Plantae It is the oldest extant (living All land plants and some Algae, have life cycles in which a haploid Gametophyte generation alternates with a Diploid sporophyte, the generation of a These sporelings develop via an embryo stage from a fertilized egg inside an archegonium and depend on the gametophyte for their early stages of growth before becoming independent sporophytes. An archegonium (pl archegonia) from the Ancient Greek ἀρχή ("beginning" and γόνος ("offspring" is a multicellular In Plants and Algae that undergo Alternation of generations, a gametophyte is the multicellular structure or phase that is Haploid, containing Young fern sporelings can often be found with the prothallus gametophyte still attached at the base of their fronds. A prothallium, or prothallus (from Latin pro = forwards and Greek θαλλος ( thallos) = twig is usually a A frond is a large Leaf with many divisions to it and the term is typically used for the leaves of palms Ferns or Cycads A frond is
External links
- British Pteridological Society: An introduction to ferns (contains a picture of a sporeling fern attached to the prothallus)
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic