OVERVIEW of bryophytes

4. The division Bryophyta (Gr. bryon=moss) includes
over 25000 species of non-vascular embryophytes such
as mosses, liverworts and hornworts.
Bryophytes are small plants (2cm to 60cm) that
grow in moist shady places.
They don’t attain great heights because of absence
of roots, vascular tissues, mechanical tissues and
cuticle.
They are terrestrial but require external water to
complete their life cycle.
Hence, they are called “Amphibians of plant kingdom”.
BRYOPHYTES

5. MOSSES IN NATURE

6. Salient features
1. Bryophytes grow in damp and shady places.
2.They follow heterologous haplodiplobiontic type of life
cycle.
3.The dominant plant body is gametophyte on which
sporophyte is semiparasitic for its nutrition.
4.The thalloid gametophyte differentiated in to rhizoids,
axis (stem) and leaves.
5.Vascular tissues (xylem and phloem) absent.
6.The gametophyte bears multi-cellular and jacketed sex
organs (antheridia and archegonia).
7. Sexual reproduction is oogamous type.
8. Multi-cellular embryo develops inside archegonium.
9. Sporophyte differentiated into foot, seta and capsule.
10. Capsule produces haploid meiospores of similar types
(homosporous).
11. Spore germinates into juvenile gametophyte called
protonema.
12. Progressive sterilization of sporogenous tissue noticed
from lower to higher bryophytes.

7. Sporangium Spores

8. Antheridia archegonia

15. LIFE CYCLE

17. CLASSIFICATION
OF
BRYOPHYTES

30. Marchantia polymorpha

34. Anthocerous natans

39. Polytrichum commune

41. Funaria hygrometrica

48. Liverworts Mosses Hornworts
Structure Thalloid or foliose Foliose Thalloid
Symmetry Dorsiventral or radial Radial Dorsiventral
Rhizoids Unicellular Pluricellular Unicellular
Chloroplasts/cell Many Many One
Protonemata Reduced Present Absent
Gametangia
(antheridia
and archegonia)
Superficial Superficial Immersed
Summary of the morphological characteristics of the gametophytes of the three groups of
bryophytes:

49. Liverworts Mosses Hornworts
Stomata Absent Present Present
Structure Small, without chlorophyll Large, with chlorophyll Large, with chlorophyll
Persistence Ephemeral Persistent Persistent
Growth Defined Defined Continuous
Seta Present Present Absent
Capsule form Simple
Differentiated
(operculum, peristome)
Elongated
Maturation of spores Simultaneous Simultaneous Graduate
Dispersion of spores Elaters Peristome teeth Pseudo-elaters
Columella Absent Present Present
Dehiscence Longitudinal or irregular Transverse Longitudinal
Summary of the morphological characteristics of the sporophytes of the three groups of
bryophytes:

54. REFRENCES
Horn worts recent classification is taken
from : wortStotler, R. E. & B. Crandall-Stotler.
2005. A revised classification of the
Anthocerotophyta and a checklist of the
hornworts of North America, north of Mexico.
Bryologist 108: 16-26
Mosses recent classification is taken
from:(modified from Goffinet, B.,W.R Buck
and A.J. Shaw, Bryophyte Biology, 2nd ed.
Cambridge University Press, 2008; Goffinet
2012:
http://www.eeb.uconn.edu/people/goffinet/Cl
assificationmosses.html)

55. www.biologydiscussion.com/bryophyta/classification-bryophyta/classification-of-bryo...
https://www.plantscience4u.com/2014/04/classification-of-bryophytes.html
https://www.anbg.gov.au/bryophyte/classification-identification.html
 cms.gcg11.ac.in/attachments/article/115/Gen%20Chr,classificatn_Bryo.pdf
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryophyte
bryophytes.plant.siu.edu/class.html
Liver worts recent classification is taken from: Crandall-Stotler, B., R. E. Stotler & D.
G.Long. [2008]2009. Morphology and classification of the Marchantiophyta, pp. 1-
54. In B. Goffinet & A. J. Shaw (eds.) Bryophyte Biology, 2nd edition. Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge. Modifications have been made based upon the more
recent publication: Crandall-Stotler, B., R. E. Stotler & D. G. Long. 2009. Phylogeny
and Classification of the Marchantiophyta, Edinburgh Journal of Botany 66: 155-198.