Chapter 21, Problem 13A

Summary Introduction

Introduction:

Plants are important to our survival. The oxygen we breathe, the food we eat, and many of the things that make our lives comfortable. Plants are multicellular eukaryotes with tissues and organs that have specialized structures and functions. Plants that inhabited land developed adaptations that helped them survive limited water resources as well as other environmental factors.

Answer to Problem 13A

Correct answer :

The correct answer is option (D) rhizoids.

Explanation of Solution

Explanation/justification for the correct answer :

Option (D) rhizoids. Mosses have multicellular rhizoids that anchor them to soil or another surface. Water and dissolve minerals can diffuse into a moss’s rhizoids. Therefore, it is a characteristic of mosses. So, this is a correct answer.

Explanation for incorrect answer :

Option (A) vascular tissue. Mosses have some tissue that transports water and food, these plants do not have true vascular tissues. Water and other substances move throughout a moss by diffusion and osmosis. Therefore, it is not a characteristic of mosses. So, this is an incorrect answer.

Option (B) flower. Mosses are a seedless vascular plant that have specialized transport tissues, and they reproduce by spores. They have roots, stems, and small, scaly, leaflike structures. Therefore, it is not a characteristic of mosses. So, this is an incorrect answer.

Option (C) seeds. Club mosses are a seedless vascular plant that have specialized transport tissues, and they reproduce by spores. Therefore, it is not a characteristic of mosses. So, this is an incorrect answer.