Read the following characteristics of an aquatic plant: (i) It is a marine sea grass. (ii) Its female flowers remain submerged in water. (iii) Its pollen grains are long, ribbon-like and are carried passively inside the water. Identify the plant and the specific adaptation that protects its pollen grains from wetting.

Step-by-step solution

The given characteristics describe Zostera, a marine sea grass that exhibits submerged hydrophily. In Zostera, the female flowers remain submerged in water, and the long, ribbon-like pollen grains are released inside the water. To prevent damage or wetting in the aquatic environment, the pollen grains of most water-pollinated species, including Zostera, are protected by a mucilaginous covering. Vallisneria and Hydrilla are fresh water plants, and Vallisneria exhibits surface hydrophily. A thick sporopollenin exine