Mosses and lichens are 100% space pioneers. It was they who first "came out" on land, adapted to life on it, and also became the material for the formation of humus. In addition, mosses and lichens underlie the evolution of plants.
What are mosses and lichens
- mosses- these are higher spore plants that belong to the department of the Moss-like kingdom of Plants.
- Lichens- lower plants formed by the symbiosis of fungi and bacteria.
Comparison of mosses and lichens
What is the difference between mosses and lichens?
Mosses appeared on Earth at the end of the Devonian - at the beginning of the Carboniferous period. Mosses are present on all continents, including Antarctica. The only condition necessary for the life of mosses is the presence of a sufficient amount of moisture required for the organization of the reproduction process.
Lichens appeared in the early Devonian. They are distributed on all continents and were able to adapt to life and rise to the maximum height for plants in mountainous areas.
mosses are miniature plants. They have no roots, so they are attached to the substrate with the help of multicellular hair-like processes - rhizoids. In addition to fixing in the soil, rhizoids play the role of delivering water and nutrients to the body. But these same substances can enter the plant through the stem and leaves. The leaves and stems of mosses contain chlorophyll, becoming the site for the process of photosynthesis.
Lichens These are amazing plants. Their body - thallus - is formed by the cohabitation of fungi and algae. But forcibly separated components of the lichen organism are able to exist independently. In the lichen thallus, fungal hyphae form an upper and lower crust. And in the middle, like a filling in a pie, there are algae. They are involved in photosynthesis, possessing the pigment chlorophyll. Lichens do not have roots. As a result of life processes, fungal hyphae release acid, destroying the substrate to which they are attached.
mosses are dioecious plants. Female individuals at their tops have organs containing eggs, and male organisms have organs containing spermatozoa. They are sporophytes, one of two generations that dominate the moss life cycle. After pollination, a sporangium is formed on the female plant. Spores ripen in it, which, having fallen into a humid environment, germinate. From this green thread - the gametophyte - new female and male individuals grow over time.
Lichens can reproduce vegetatively, asexually and sexually, forming characteristic fruiting bodies.
Moss retains water in the soil, sometimes swamping it. Mosses were the first dressing material and are the basis for the formation of peat.
Not enduring pollution in the atmosphere, lichens have become ideal indicators of the state of the air. Lichens are considered biological destroyers of rocks and the basis of the soil formation process.
The difference between mosses and lichens is as follows:
- Lichens appeared on Earth earlier than mosses and have a wider area of distribution.
- Moss is a single organism, lichen is a conglomeration of organisms capable of independent existence.
- Mosses are at a higher evolutionary stage of development than lichens.
- Both plants have different biological and economic importance.
Most of us know about mosses and lichens only that these are the simplest types of plants, and also that according to which side the moss grows, you can somehow get out of the forest if you get lost. But here such terms as "bryology" or "sphagnum", for everyone who is not a professional biologist, florist or aquarist, may be incomprehensible. Let's fill the gap in knowledge, because it's quite interesting!
What are mosses and where are they found
Mosses (more precisely, mosses) are a department of the plant kingdom that combines such species in the reproduction cycle of which the “gametophyte” life stage (sexual generation with a single set of unpaired chromosomes) prevails over the “sporophyte” stage (asexual generation).
The scientific definition of mosses is bryophytes, hence the name of the branch of botany that studies them - bryology. The vast majority of mosses belong to the class of leafy mosses.
The stems of these plants, located above the ground, are dotted with small outgrowth leaves, while the underground part has many long thread-like processes, the so-called rhizoids. Representatives of this species have both similarities and significant differences from their relatives in the kingdom.
Mosses, like fungi and bacteria, reproduce by spores. At this early and fleeting asexual stage of their life cycle, mosses are the simplest formation (sporophyte) in the form of a box on a stem, physiologically associated with its mother plant. 
The sporophyte performs one single function - it ensures the maturation of spores, after which it quickly dries up and dies.
The bryophyte of the sexual generation - the second stage of the life cycle - is a perennial plant (gametophyte), which has a semblance of root processes and leaf-like outgrowths. However, this is only an external resemblance to deciduous plants.
Important! Mosses have no roots, no flowers, no vascular system in the traditional sense of these terms.
Due to the absence of a true root system, mosses are critically dependent on air humidity up to a complete suspension of vital activity in dry times. As soon as the moisture level is restored, the plant comes to life. It is difficult to imagine a place where mosses grow.
These plants, under favorable conditions, are capable of covering vast areas in forests and interforests with a continuous blanket, settling on soil, trees, other plants, stones, sand, in any climatic zones - from the Arctic to the desert. They do not get along only in salty sea water. 
The meaning of mosses
The importance of mosses in the formation and development of the Earth's biosphere can hardly be overestimated. Since prehistoric times, the ancient ancestors of modern lichens, mosses and ferns gradually colonized the previously lifeless wastelands, creating, as a result of their vital activity, the soil cover necessary for other plants, and thus becoming a kind of “pioneer” in the landscaping of our planet.
Important! Bryophytes are the basis of marsh ecosystems. In arid areas, due to the property, like a sponge, to accumulate and retain large volumes of water, mossy thickets prevent the onset of the desert.
In places of their dominant growth, bryophytes are able to cover vast areas of the earth's surface, acting as a natural refuge for animals and birds. In areas of tundra and permafrost, they are a stabilizing factor preventing the melting of underground ice, the formation of landslides and ravines, and contribute to the preservation of the terrain.
Video: the meaning of mosses
If we talk about the importance of bryophytes for humans, then their use is very diverse. Extracts from certain species of these plants can be used in cosmetology and medicine as tonic, antiseptic and hemostatic agents.
For residents of the Far North, far from civilization, moss is very relevant as a natural insulation of dwellings, and, say, in the taiga it can be used as dressings in the provision of medical care.
Ornamental species of bryophytes are one of the most important elements of landscape design and decoration of floral compositions. And yet, first of all, peat is used in human life - natural deposits of dying sphagnum mosses.
Peat is used:
- as a fuel in the energy sector;
- as a raw material and filler for soil mixtures and fertilizers, as well as mulch in agricultural technology and agriculture;
- as bedding on fur farms and poultry farms;
- as a heater in construction;
- in metallurgy, medicine, chemical industry, ecology and many other industries.
forest mosses
The forest is an ideal place for the growth of bryophytes. Here they coexist on trees, stones, along the banks of streams and lakes, preferring moderately shaded, damp places, often covering large areas with a continuous carpet.
All of them belong to the class of leafy mosses, which means that they have a stem covered with small leaves in the aerial (above-water) part, and downy with numerous outgrowths in the lower, constantly dying part. Different types of mosses differ not only in the shape and color of the leaves, but also in the density and direction of growth of the stems. 
It should be noted that in warm and humid weather, mossy thickets always have a lush and juicy appearance, playing with colors from bluish-green to yellow-brown, which creates a truly delightful sight. In the absence of moisture, all this splendor quickly fades, as if covered with a thick layer of dust.
The most common representatives of forest bryophytes include:
- Climacium.
The above-ground part of the climatium is a low stem (up to 15 centimeters), which rises vertically upwards, branching several times in a bushy manner in all directions, and in fact resembles a small tree. 
The “trunk” and “branches” of this tree are dotted with small scaly leaves, which, when dry, play with bright yellowish-green hues.
Did you know? Interestingly, mosses can "wake up" even after a very long freeze. So, in 2014, scientists found samples of frozen mosses at the South Pole. Their age was determined at 1530 years. After some two or three weeks in an incubator with the right conditions, the moss began to grow. Among bryologists, this event was perceived as a sensation.
The lower (underground) part of the stem is creeping, dotted with barely noticeable rhizoidal filaments. Branching, it forms a semblance of a network, in the nodes of which bushes of the aerial part rise. The cylindrical box of sporogon is located on a long red stalk and contains from 12 to 15 spores.
Climacium can often be found in bright areas in dense moist forests, near swamps, rivers, along the banks of lakes. 
This name hides a whole genus of moss, numbering more than forty varieties.
The most common representatives of this genus are as follows:
- mnium, or mnium wavy;
- mnium wrinkled;
- mnium spiky or forest;
- mnium medium;
- mnium point;
- mnium zinclide.
The main feature of the mnium is rather large (up to 5 mm) oval-shaped leaves, freely located in the same plane on two opposite sides on a single stalk, not exceeding five centimeters in length.
Did you know? Surprising is the fact that the living cells of the leaves of the mnium are also located in the same plane. In other words, the sheet has the minimum possible thickness - just one cell.
In dry weather, the leaves of the mnium are extremely wrinkled and greatly reduced in size. Sporogon has an oval box hanging from a yellowish-red leg, no more than 3 centimeters long. In a box, from 17 to 30 spores can ripen (depending on the variety).
Mnium is distributed everywhere, mainly in forests, while preferring densely planted pine forests with moist soil. Often settles on stones and old stumps, forming bright green thickets.
In pine forests and spruce forests (necessarily with an admixture of pine) you can find one of the most elegant bryophytes - ptilium. Despite its ubiquitous distribution, it almost never forms a continuous blanket on the ground, preferring to settle at the base of trees, forming solitary but dense thickets of pale yellow or yellow-green color with a silky sheen. 
Ptilium has medium height stems (can reach 20 centimeters), from which many densely arranged branches with leaves extend in opposite directions. In their appearance, these formations resemble a bird's feather or fern leaves. The leaves of this moss, in contrast to the mnium, are very small, narrow (up to 1 mm), pointed, with many longitudinal folds.
The spore box is cylindrical, slightly flattened, almost always horizontal. The leg of the sporogon is red, from 2 to 5 centimeters in length. The number of spores in a box is from 10 to 14 pieces.
There are many different landscapes in the forest zone. These are forest thickets, and hilly meadows, and fields, and even rock massifs. However, the swamp is a special, unique world of its kind! It has been formed for decades, and can live for millennia, while constantly expanding and capturing more and more new territories.
Surprisingly, it is the moss that contributes to this. More precisely, its representatives are sphagnidia. Sphagnum, it is also called white or peat moss, is a genus that unites more than forty species of marsh mosses, each of which can be reliably identified only in the process of microscopic examination. 
It is a small, bundle-like branching stem, covered with small leaves arranged in a spiral. The color of the plant varies from yellowish green to purplish red (depending on the variety). There are no rhizoids on the lower (underwater) part of the stem.
Sphagnum has a certain set of unusual properties that distinguish it from other mossy plants. The first feature is that the sphagnum stem grows only upwards.
At the same time, the lower part of the stem (usually located under water) dies off, turning into peat, at approximately the same rate as the upper one grows (about one millimeter per year). This way of existence can provide a life expectancy of more than one thousand years (for reference: other mosses live no more than 10 years).
Did you know? The Witmoor bog (Germany) has a peat layer of about 18 meters deep,and its age is about 2000 years.
The next feature of sphagnides is that they synthesize acids that prevent the development of bacteria, which significantly slows down the processes of decay in swamps and promotes the formation of peat. An acidic environment, in addition, oppresses competitors and allows you to capture new living spaces.
Another property of sphagnum is the ability to absorb and retain water due to the presence of special cells with a porous structure. During periods of high humidity, this moss is able to accumulate huge amounts of liquid, which also leads to a shift in the water balance and the capture of new territories.
Rodobrium, or rosette-shaped rodobrium, is another representative of leafy mosses that can be found in a coniferous forest (mainly spruce). If the coniferous litter is well moistened, the rodobrium is found on it in the form of many small bunches of dark green color - rosettes of leaves slightly raised above the ground, each on its own stalk. 
The stem is solitary, up to 10 cm in height, can have branching shoots both in the upper (apical) and lower (underground) parts. Apical shoots often grow through the rosette. In the ground part, the stem is covered with a rhizoid down.
Rhodobrium leaves have an ovoid-elongated shape, reach 10 mm in length, are slightly twisted, and closer to the top they are pointed. In each bunch, from 15 to 20 leaves can be collected. Leaves of this size are considered quite large compared to other leafy mosses.
If you look at the Rhodobrium rosette from the side, you can note its resemblance to a palm tree. Spore boxes rise above the rosette on thick red legs, have an oblong shape and are capable of carrying up to 18 spores.
This species is distributed in the taiga zone of mid-southern latitudes, less common in the north. Listed in the Red Book. 
This moss is very widespread. Often found in coniferous forests, and often it forms the basis of the moss cover of forest soils. More tends to the northern regions, there is a lot of it in the permafrost regions and the deserts of the Arctic.
Did you know? Buddhist monks created entire moss gardens, the most famous of which is located in a monastery near Kyoto and is listed as a UNESCO cultural heritage.
Hylocomium has a multi-stage arcuate stem up to 20 centimeters long, usually red. Each new arc corresponds to the next year of plant development and is laid just below the top of last year's arc.
The formed stem arch strongly branches in three or four places, forming a stepped sloping-ascending structure. The stem and its branches are densely dotted with leaves, which are tiny green scales, difficult to see with the eye due to their size. 
Sporonoses hylocomium in spring. Sporogon is formed at the top of last year's stem just above the young green shoot. A slightly curved, egg-shaped sporogon box, located on a low reddish stalk, stores from 12 to 17 spores.
Thus, mosses are a completely independent and amazing kingdom in its diversity in the general world of plants. You can devote your whole life to studying them, and still many secrets will remain unsolved.
One thing is for sure: if there were no mosses, our planet would be completely different, because it is these plants that ensure the course of many biological processes, and even our civilized life practically cannot do without them.
Moss is the oldest plant, over 400 million years old. To study this department of higher plants, a whole science called bryology has been singled out.
Many people have no idea what types of bryophytes are, and often do not distinguish between mosses and lichens. Meanwhile, this amazing representative of the flora plays an important role in the ecosystem and soil moisture, is used in medicine and is a source of peat deposits, from which people later get fuel. It is impossible to deny the great importance of the diversity of mosses in the life of people and nature. Moss, the pictures of which will be provided below, is striking in its variety of appearance.
Structure and distribution
Mossy plants are distinguished by the absence of flowers and root systems. Some species have rhizoids - processes that resemble roots. The leaves have a supply of chlorophyll and support vital functions. There is also a sporophyte, consisting of a stem and a box in which spores ripen, which serve for reproduction. The maximum stem height is 5 cm, with the exception of some aquatic mosses and epiphytes. It should be noted that reindeer moss, called reindeer moss and reaching 20 cm in height, does not belong to the bryophyte department.
Moss is an example of plants that use two modes of reproduction for greater survival: sexual and asexual. During the breeding season by spores, shoots may look flowering due to the appearance of flower-like green heads. Spores remain viable for decades, with the help of emerging threads, they are attached to the selected surface.
Mosses can be found in almost all corners of the planet. Most species prefer moist soil in swampy areas, shady places and tree trunks for growth. In the event of a dry period, bryophytes temporarily stop growing and fall into a state of suspended animation. Less commonly, rocks and stones can be observed as a habitat for spore plants. . These representatives of the flora cannot be found in the seas or in areas with saline soil, as they cannot tolerate salt.
Species diversity
The first representatives of the bryophyte department originated in the Carboniferous period long before the appearance of flowering plants and outwardly did not undergo any changes, retaining their original appearance to our times. At present, the number of moss species is about 20 thousand, including the division of liverworts and anthocerotophytes.
The following classes exist:
- Hepatic;
- Anthocerotes;
- Leafy (briev).
Subclasses can be distinguished from the list:
- Sphagnum (peat or white);
- Takakievye;
- Hypnic;
- Andreevs.
Liver and Anthocerota
More than 6,000 moss species belong to the liver class with the dominant life stage gametophyte. Liverworts are common in tropical areas and in moderately humid climates. They are characterized by a vegetative mode of reproduction. Jungermannian liverworts have stems and leaves, thallus - a flat thallus (thallus), located on the ground or floating on the water surface.
Of the most famous representatives of the class, one can single out the polymorphic marchantia, pellia, ciliated ptilidium, and buoyant richchia. The latter is often bred in aquariums.
Anthocerotes are characterized by the presence of a lamellar thallus or thallus. Like liverworts, anthocerotophytes are found mainly in the tropics. In conditions of excessive drought, tuberous thickenings appear on the thalli, thanks to which the plants can survive adverse conditions. Often live in symbiosis with blue algae.
Typical representatives: field antoceros, smooth and forked antoceros.
Brie or bryopsides
Leafy - one of the largest classes of mosses. Distributed throughout the world. There are both annual and perennial specimens. In height, they are both low, 5–10 mm each, and higher, reaching 15 cm. Difistium multi-leaved, for example, can be attributed to especially small mosses.
Known representatives of briopsids are cuckoo flax and fire-fighting fontinalis, which can often be found in the forests of Russia in northern and middle latitudes. Due to the abundance of flat leaves, the cuckoo flax resembles a small part of a coniferous branch growing upwards, but fontinalis is more like a tiny fern.
In the southern lands, there is a small-mouthed funaria and a wavy mnium - low plants with pointed leaves of green hues. Rhodobrium rosette, on the contrary, prefers to stay in the shade of coniferous forests.
Another example of briev - shiny hylocomium having leaves in the form of scales. It consists of several tiers due to the special branching and dense leafy cover.
sphagnum mosses
An example of the most famous subclass of bryophytes is sphagnum. There are more than 300 species, which are characterized by red, greenish-white or yellow color and relatively large sizes. Sphagnum grows in the tundra and forest lowlands with damp soil, forming a dense carpet due to the dense growth of leaves. If young shoots have rhizoids, then adult representatives of the species are completely devoid of root-like formations.
Popular representatives: swamp sphagnum, brown, hairy, Magellanic.
Peat, the source of which is sphagnum, is actively used in agriculture and industry to produce peat gas. The carbolic acid secreted by moss has found application in medicine due to its bactericidal properties.
Takakiev, Hypnum and Andreev
Bryophytes belonging to the class Takakiya are rather controversial plants. At first, bryologists attributed this class to liverworts due to the characteristic structure of gametophytes, however, after a detailed study of sporophytes, the plant was reclassified to leafy. Visually, takakia differs from other bryophytes. There are two types of takaki: takakia horn-leaved and lepidosiform. Habitats are the Far East, as well as the northwest of North America.
Representatives of the Hypnaceae species form a plant carpet on wet soils and rocks. Shoots are abundantly covered with leaves on all sides, hypnum mosses are spread mainly in the north. A well-known representative of the cypress hypnum species is also common in the forest belt; it can be found both in a dense grove and on rocky hills.
Bryophytes, belonging to the Andreev class, prefer cold terrain. Due to the peculiarities of the structure and the ability to take root in stone pores, they can grow on rocks and in stony soils. There are about 100 species of Andreev mosses. Examples: cold Andrew and Rocky Andrew.
aquarium moss
There are varieties of decorative mosses suitable for decorating aquariums. Bryophytes are loved by aquarists due to their high survival rate, unpretentiousness and slow growth. A large number of variations in appearance is another advantage in favor of bryophytes.
Common key moss, fontinalis, java moss, Riccia floating, Riccardia are examples of plants suitable for decorating an aquarium.
Mosses occupy a not always noticeable, but extremely important role in people's lives. In addition to applications in construction, medicine, industry and aquariums, bryophytes can become an object for collecting and numerous photographs. These creations of nature are truly amazing and beautiful.
moss species
To understand what mosses are, you need to study the most ancient eta - the highest type, isolated and numerous. In our time, there are almost 30 thousand varieties of mosses on the entire planet.
Classification
Botanists have discovered and studied all known species, the classification of which is based on differences in the morphological structure, methods of distribution and the structure of spore boxes. can be conditionally divided into the following classes: deciduous, liverwort and anthocerot mosses.
Deciduous mosses
What are deciduous mosses? They are otherwise called briopsids. This is a large class with about 15 thousand species. Representatives of this group are recognized as the most highly developed of all plants of this department. Briopsids are very diverse, both in shape and size. Sometimes they reach considerable sizes. The most viable stage of their existence is the gametophyte. The plant looks like a stem with single-layer leaves arranged in a spiral. Bryopsids reproduce by spores. They are distributed in the tundra, swampy and humid areas. Representatives: cuckoo flax,
liver mosses
What are hepatic mosses (liverworts)? They number about 8.5 thousand species and are divided into two subclasses: Marchantium and Jungermann liverworts. The predominant viable stage is the gametophyte. Externally, the plant resembles a flattened "stem" with leaves arranged along. Propagated by spores with the help of an elater (special spring). Liverworts are common in tropical and temperate climates. Typical representatives: hairy blepharostroma, polymorphic marchantia, barbilophosia lycopsus, ciliated ptylidium.
Anthocerotus mosses
What are Anthocerote mosses? This class of mosses is often regarded by specialists as a subclass of liver mosses. It includes almost 300 species.
The sporophyte stage predominates. Externally, the plant looks like a rosette-like or lobed thallus. These mosses are found in temperate humid and tropical climates. The representative of the class is anthoceros.
Generalized characteristics of mosses
So what are mosses? These are undersized plants, the height of which can vary from 1 mm to 60 centimeters. They grow on tree trunks, on the walls of houses, on the ground, in fresh water and swamps. Due to salt intolerance, plants are not found in the seas and on saline soils. Most often, the structure of mosses is very simple - stems and leaves. But the roots of the plants in question are completely absent. They absorb water and nutrients with rhizoids or the whole body. Adaptation to terrestrial existence has led to the fact that mosses have integumentary and mechanical tissues, as well as new cells that perform a conductive function. The plant is a perennial, most often small in size (only a few mm high), less often large (up to 60 cm). Its body looks like a thallus (anthocerotic or individual liverworts) or is divided into a “stem” and “leaves”. Attachment to the substrate and absorption of water is carried out by outgrowths of cells, the so-called rhizoids (they, as a rule, do not have a conducting system).
It also does not differ in intricacy. These are large light green or slightly reddish curtains. They have upright "stems", with clustered leafy "branches". Without rhizoids, the moss stem is upright (gradually dying from below), leafy in several rows, with numerous leafy lateral processes, which are collected at the top of the stem into a dense head. Throughout the rest of the stem, the branches are collected in bunches. The latter consist of 3-13 branches hanging and spaced from the stem. At the top, the “branches” shorten and gather into a dense head. Colorless aquifers with pores make up the outer layer of the “stem”.
Single-layer "leaves" of sphagnum include two types of cells: photosynthetic and aquifers. The first are worm-shaped and contain chloroplasts located between aquifers. There are many such cells, which allows the sphagnum to absorb a large amount of water. Sphagnum sporophyte is a rounded box in which spores appear, with a lid. When the spores mature, the pressure inside the box increases, as a result of which the lid opens, and the ripe spores are thrown out. This process takes place in warm weather for better spore dispersal.
What are green mosses? Kukushkin flax can be attributed to their bright representatives. Its “stem” is covered with hard, dark green subulate “leaves”. It has rhizoids and grows up to 30-40 cm. The leaves of the moss are recurved and erect, with an elongated membranous sheath and a vein protruding from the top. The “stem” has a primitive conducting system and dioecious gametophytes. The top of the "stems" ends with antheridia and archegonia. After fertilization, a sporophyte develops from the zygote, which is a box on a long stalk for the maturation of haploid spores in it. The box is covered with a falling cap with thin, drooping hairs, similar to linen yarn. The moss box is subdivided into a lid, a neck and an urn. Inside the box is a "hidden" column filled with barren cells. Around the column is the sporangium. The urn and the lid adjoin a ring consisting of cells with thickened walls. This ring is responsible for dropping the urn and separating it from the lid.
Moss propagation methods
The sexual generation predominates over the asexual one. The reproductive organs of moss are formed directly on its body. These are the archegonia and antheridia mentioned above. Archegonia are responsible for the formation and development of one immobile female gamete, and antheridia for many male gametes. In the fertilized female gamete (the condition is the presence of water), the asexual generation of moss begins to develop - the sporophyte. This is a kind of box on a leg, attached to the body of the moss. It contains many spores that are able to germinate under favorable conditions, forming a new plant. Some species are able to reproduce vegetatively. At the same time, the thallus is separated from the adult organism, which is attached in close proximity to the plant, and begins an independent existence and reproduction.
moss spread
It is more difficult to determine where there is no moss than to tell where moss grows. This representative of the flora is distributed almost everywhere - from the tropics to the polar regions. In tropical regions, moss grows mainly in mountainous areas and in forests, i.e., where high humidity prevails. Sometimes soil covered with mosses is also found in arid areas, since this plant has the ability to temporarily stop its vital activity during the dry period, and resume it with the advent of moisture. Basically, mosses predominate in the temperate and subarctic zones of the northern hemisphere.
Moss and its meaning
The value of mosses in nature is enormous. Firstly, thanks to these representatives of the plant world, the landscape water balance is regulated, because they are able to accumulate large reserves of moisture in the thallus. Secondly, the moss plant creates a special biocenosis, especially in areas where it completely covers the soil. In addition, this group has the ability to accumulate and retain radiation. The value of mosses for animals is also great, because bryophytes are the main type of food for some individuals. And in human life, this plant also plays an important role. So, many species are effectively used in pharmacology. And the peat formed after the death of mosses is used as fuel.
Tests
620-1. The accumulation of what group of plants contributes to waterlogging of the soil?
A) lycopsform
B) horsetail
B) mossy
D) ferns
Answer
620-2. The stem with leaves in the process of evolution first appeared in
A) algae
B) mossy
B) horsetail
D) ferns
Answer
620-3. Mosses represent a dead end branch in plant evolution because
A) more highly organized ferns originated from them
B) they did not give rise to more highly organized plants
C) more highly organized horsetails originated from them
D) they evolved from unicellular algae
Answer
620-4. What are the characteristics of mosses?
A) adventitious roots develop from the stem
B) spores are formed in a box
C) they have no escape
D) pollination precedes fertilization
Answer
620-5. Mosses develop from spores
A) a box on a leg
B) seed
B) green thread
D) sprout
Answer
620-6. The adaptability of sphagnum moss to life in conditions of excessive moisture is manifested in the presence of
A) rhizomes with adventitious roots
B) cells with chloroplasts
B) dead cells
D) rhizoids
Answer
620-7. Representatives of which department of the plant kingdom are shown in the figure?
Answer
620-8. What plants belong to the Bryophytes department?
A) living on land and reproducing by seeds
B) leafy, without roots, reproducing by spores
C) all plants in wet habitats
D) all herbaceous plants
Answer
620-9) What adaptations to the absorption of large amounts of water appeared in the process of evolution in mosses?
A) rhizoids - outgrowths on the stem
B) large dead cells
B) spore boxes
D) cells of thin integumentary tissue
Answer
620-10. In green mosses, unlike algae,
A) cells have large and small nuclei
B) fertilization occurs in the presence of water
C) the thallus is divided into tissues and organs
D) sexual and asexual reproduction
Answer
620-11. What division of higher plants does the plant shown in the picture belong to?
A) angiosperms
B) Gymnosperms
B) ferns
D) Bryophytes
Answer
620-12. How are bryophytes distinguished from other plants?
A) in the process of their development, alternation of generations occurs
B) reproduce by spores
B) have leaves, stem and rhizoids
D) capable of photosynthesis
Answer
620-13. Ferns, unlike green mosses, have
A) rhizoids
B) roots
B) leaves
D) stems
Answer
620-14. From spores of green moss cuckoo flax develops (s)
A) a growth in the form of a green plate
B) pregrowth in the form of green threads
B) plants with leaves
D) seeds of the future plant
Answer
620-15. Higher plants have no roots
A) Tsvetkov
B) Conifers
B) moss
D) Ferns
Answer
620-16. Ferns are much more widespread on Earth than mosses, since they
A) have a developed root system and multiply more efficiently
B) appeared in the course of evolution earlier and managed to better adapt
C) are widely grown by man for their needs
D) successfully distributed by various animals
Answer
620-17. Mosses have the simplest structure among higher plants, since
A) they have no roots
B) their stem is unbranched, with narrow leaves
C) they form organic substances from inorganic
D) they have air cells
Answer
620-18. Why do mosses represent a dead end in plant evolution?
A) they have not mastered the ground-air habitat
B) they evolved from algae
C) they do not have roots and reproduce by spores
D) they did not give rise to more highly organized plants
Answer
620-19. What department of the plant kingdom is represented in the picture?
A) ferns
B) Gymnosperms
B) Lycopsoid
D) Mossy
Answer
620-20. Which group of organisms includes green plants that do not have roots, reproduce by spores, in the life cycle of which the sexual generation predominates?
A) bryophytes
B) ferns
B) gymnosperms
D) lycopsform
