NEETBotanyPlant Kingdom
How do gemmae contribute to the reproduction of liverworts?
Options
- AThey germinate to form new individuals.
- BThey produce spores.
- CThey fuse with other gemmae.
- DThey decompose organic matter.
Correct answer
A. They germinate to form new individuals.
Step-by-step solution
The liverworts grow usually in moist, shady habitats such as banks of streams, marshy ground, damp soil, bark of trees and deep in the woods. The plant body of a liverwort is thalloid, e.g., Marchantia. The thallus is dorsiventral and closely appressed to the substrate. The leafy members have tiny leaf-like appendages in two rows on the stem-like structures. Asexual reproduction in liverworts takes place by fragmentation of thalli, or by the formation of specialized structures called gemmae (sing. gemma). Gemmae ar