Section: Reading

75)

1. A division of the bryophytes, liverworts are relatively small plants which

2. have adapted to different habitats. Two species of liverworts, Riella and

3. Ricciocarpus, thrive in aquatic habitats. Some are found in the company of

4. other vegetation such as mosses, lichens, and sedges in the tundra in

5. Antarctica, while most others prefer moist, shady floors and tree trunks of

6. tropical forests. Leafy liverworts, with two or three rows of lobe-shaped

7. leaves which overlap incompletely, are discovered plentifully in the

8. tropical forests. These plants develop water storage pockets which become

9. home to a host of very small animals. They have a prostrate growth, and

10. single-cell rhizoids -- hairlike projections -- anchor the plant but are

11. incapable of transporting nutrients to the plant. The absence of a midrib is

12. quite common in bryophytes. Sphaerocarpo, a Thallus liverwort,

13. sometimes produces round rosettes or extended, flattened lobes.

14. The bryophytes not only aid soil formation on rocky and unproductive land

15. but balance the moisture content of the soil. Their epidermal cells -- outer

16. cells of the plant -- fused with significant air pores enclose the

17. photosynthetic cells. These pores play a major role in the photosynthetic

18. process in which carbon dioxide is taken in and oxygen is given off.

It can be inferred that tundra is well suited for which of the following?

1. Deeply rooted vegetation
2. Only rosette producing plants
3. Surface vegetation with weak roots
4. Plants with semicircular-shaped leaves

By reading the information in the first paragraph, (C) can be inferred. Liverworts are found on the floors and tree trunks of tropical forests because they do not have a strong root system; therefore, the tundra in Antarctica is a suitable place for them.