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    138 views17 pages

    Rhynia

    Uploaded by

    manojtbgri5793

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 17

    RHYNIA

    SYSTEMATIC POSITION
    DIVISION – PSILOPHYTA
    CLASS – PSILOPHYTOPSIDA
    ORDER – PSILOTALES
    FAMILY – RHYNIACEAE
    GENUS - RHYNIA
    GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
    Rhynia is a fossil pteridophyte and has no living
    representative today
    It was first discovered in 1913 from Rhyniechert in the
    Scotland
    Rhynia flourished during the devonian period of
    palaeozoic era
    There are only two species of Rhynia – Rhynia gwyne-
    vaughani and Rhynia major.
    EXTERNAL FEATURES
    Rhynia was a sporophytic plant
    R. gwyne-vaughani was a small plant attaining a
    height of 20 cm.
    R. major was larger in size and about 50 cm in height
    The plant body consisted of a cylindrical rhizome and
    dichotomously branched aerial stems. Rhizome was
    also dischotomously branched.
    The rhizome was buried in the mud or peat
    Aerial branches arose from the rhizome and grew
    upwards
    There was no root on the stem
    Tufts of rhizoids arose from some places on the lower
    surface of the rhizome and fixed it in the substratum
    The aerial stem was more or less similar to the rhizome
    There was no leaf on the stem
    The surface of R.major was smooth, but that of R.
    gwyne-vaughani was rough.
    R. gwyne-vaughani had many hemispherical lumps
    scattered over the stem. These lumps are believed to
    be rudimentary leaves. The stem was green and
    photosynthetic
    The tip of the brances bore a single oval shaped
    sporangium
    In R. gwyne-vaughani adventitious branches also
    arose on the aerial stem
    The vascular bundle of the rhizome extended upto the
    tips of dichotomous branches. However, vascular
    bundle of adventitious branches was independent and
    free from that of the main stem
    INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF STEM
    The internal structure of the stem and rhizome are very simple
    and the same
    A T.S of stem shows an outer epidermis, a middle cortex and a
    central stele
    Epidermis is the outermost layer. It consists of closely arranged
    thin walled cells. The outer walls of the epidermal cells are
    lined with a thick layer of cuticle. The epidermis is interrupted
    by many stomata
    The cortex lies below the epidermis. In young stems and
    rhizomes, the cortex is homogenous and composed of thin
    walled cells. In mature stems the cortex is differentiated into
    two regions, the outer cortex and inner cortex. In some
    specimens the outer cortex is separated from the inner cortex
    by a narrow zone of cells with dark contents
    The cells of the outer cortex are larger than those of
    the inner cortex. They are densely packed and devoid
    of intercellular spaces
    The Inner cortex is composed of loosely arranged thin
    walled cells with intercellular spaces. The inner cortex
    is believed to be the site of photosynthesis
    Endodermis and pericycle are absent
    The stele found in the centre of the stem is made up of
    a central core of xylem surrounded by phloem
    The protoxylem occupies the centre of the stele and is
    composed of small tracheids. These tracheids may
    have annular or spiral thickenings on their lateral walls
    The protoxylem is surrounded by metaxylem which is
    made up of larger tracheids
    The xylem is surrounded by phloem
    The phloem is composed of small elongated thin
    walled cells. These cells have no sieve plates at their
    ends, but there are sieve like pores in their lateral walls
    REPRODUCTION
    Rhynia was a diploid sporophytic plant
    It might have reproduced by vegetative method and
    asexual spores.
    The sex organs were reported from the plant
    VEGETATIVE REPRODUCTION
    Rhynia probably reproduced vegetatively by
    fragmentation.
    The young stem was detached from older portions and
    it grew into a new sporophytic plant
    ASEXUAL SPORES
    These were produced in specialized structures called
    sporangia
    The sporangia were oval shaped or pear shaped
    structures arising at the tips of branches
    The sporangia of Rhynia gwyne=vaughani were
    smaller than those in Rhynia major
    The sporangium consisted of several layered thick
    jacket and numerous spores
    The outer layer of the sporangial wall was the
    epidermis which was lined with a thick cuticle
    The outermost cells of the multilayered sporangial
    wall were thick walled. The middle layers possessed
    thin walled cells and innermost layer consists of thin
    walled rounded cells which probably act as tapetal
    layer
    The sporangia were homosporous. The spores were
    arranged in the form of tetrads
    The arrangement of spores in tetrads proves that the
    spores were products of meiosis and the plants bearing
    them were sporophytes
    The spores germinated into haploid gametophytes.
    However the gametophytes of Rhynia have not been
    reported so far

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