Exam 30: Plant Diversity II: The Evolution of Seed Plants

Among plants known as legumes (beans, peas, alfalfa, clover, for example) the seeds are contained in a fruit that is itself called a legume, better known as a pod. Upon opening such pods, it is commonly observed that some ovules have become mature seeds, whereas other ovules have not. Thus, which of the following statements is/are likely accurate?

Immature seed cones of conifers are usually green before pollination, and flowers of grasses are inconspicuously colored. What does this indicate about their pollination?

Use the information to answer the following question. Açai berries come from trees that are native to the Amazon River Basin and now are the basis of many popular fruit drinks. Farmers with small areas harvest the berries in their family farms. Sometimes, they plant additional açai trees, weed out underbrush, and remove other trees in an effort to increase açai production. A recent study compared the forest characteristics of unmanipulated plots versus those where the farmers modified the plants in the plots. This study produced the following results: Which of the following conclusions are most reasonable to draw from the data presented?

Use the information to answer the following question. The cycads, a mostly tropical phylum of gymnosperms, evolved about 300 million years ago and were dominant forms during the age of the dinosaurs. Though their sperm are flagellated, their ovules are pollinated by beetles. These beetles get nutrition from the pollen and shelter from the microsporophylls. Upon visiting megasporophylls, the beetles transfer pollen to the exposed ovules. In cycads, pollen cones and seed cones are borne on different plants. Cycads synthesize neurotoxins, especially in the seeds, that are effective against most animals, including humans. On the Pacific island of Guam, large herbivorous bats called "flying foxes" commonly feed on cycad seeds, a potent source of neurotoxins. The flying foxes do not visit male cones. Which of the following proposed studies would be worth investigating next?

Unlike almost all ferns, seed plants ________.

Suppose that the cells of seed plants, like the cells of human skin, produce a pigment upon increased exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Rank the following cells, from greatest to least, in terms of the likelihood of producing this pigment.

Many mammals have skins and mucous membranes that are sensitive to phenolic secretions of plants like poison oak (Rhus). These secondary compounds are primarily adaptations that ________.

Which of the following statements about the pine life cycle is accurate?

Key features of seed plants facilitating life on land include three of the following four traits. Select the exception.

Which of the following is a major trend in land plant evolution?

Where in an angiosperm would you find a megasporangium?

Use the information to answer the following question. Oviparous (egg-laying) animals have internal fertilization (sperm cells encounter eggs within the female's body). Yolk and/or albumen is (are) provided to the embryo, and a shell is then deposited around the embryo and its food source. Eggs are subsequently deposited in an environment that promotes their further development, or are incubated by one or both parents. The internal fertilization that occurs prior to shell deposition has what type of analog in angiosperms?

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. Orchid bees are to Brazil nut trees as ________ are to pine trees.

Compared to animal-pollinated plants, wind-pollinated angiosperms ________.

Use the information to answer the following question. The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17), is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 meters tall, a source of high-quality lumber, and a favorite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts), fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilize themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.), a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate. Animals that consume Brazil nuts derive nutrition mostly from tissue whose nuclei have how many chromosomes?

The advantages of seeds, compared to spores, include ________.

In terms of alternation of generations, the internal parts of the pollen grains of seed-producing plants are most similar to a ________.

The closest relatives of the familiar pine and spruce trees are ________.

Use the information to answer the following question. Oviparous (egg-laying) animals have internal fertilization (sperm cells encounter eggs within the female's body). Yolk and/or albumen is (are) provided to the embryo, and a shell is then deposited around the embryo and its food source. Eggs are subsequently deposited in an environment that promotes their further development, or are incubated by one or both parents. The laying of eggs has what type of analog in angiosperms?

Arrange the following structures from largest to smallest, assuming that they belong to two generations of the same angiosperm.