Gymnosperms

Multiple Choice

Gymnosperms are known for having NAKED seeds!

• True

• False

​Gymnosperms are a group of plants with the following unique characteristics:

• They do not have an outer covering or shell around their seeds, so their seeds are NAKED!

• They do not produce flowers.

• They do not produce fruits.

• They are pollinated by the wind.

Multiple Choice

When did gymnosperms first exist?

• 5 years ago

• Almost 300 million years ago

• 100 million years ago

• 1 billion years ago

The fossil evidence suggests that they originted about 270 million years ago with Ginkgo biloba plants.

Wow! Gymnosperms have existed for along time!

Multiple Select

How did gymnosperms spread over the Earth? (Check all that are true.)

• Wind carries sperm in pollen grains to eggs in ovules.

• Wind carries eggs in ovules to sperm in pollen grains

• Forests can grow over vast expanses of dry terrain (land).

• Wind and animals can carry the fertilized embryo (in pinecones to new places to grow.

​How can sexual reproduction happen without water? Gymnosperms use WIND for pollination and seed dispersal!

Wind carries pollen grains from male cones to female ovules (inside pinecones). Also, wind carries fertilized embryos within pinecones to new areas to grow.

Multiple Choice

Gymnosperms are short.

• True

• False

Gymnosperms have the vascular support structure to grow TALL!

Multiple Choice

Name the 4 types of gymnosperms.

• Conifers, Cycads, Ginkgoes, and Gnetophytes

• Snoopy, Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, and Sponge Bob

• Aquatics, Forests, Swamps, and Tundra

• Dan, Phil, Sarah, and Holly

1. Conifers = evergreens and pine trees
2. Cycads = palm trees
3. Ginkgoes = There's only one species, Ginkgo biloba, identical to fossils 270 million years old
4. Gnetophytes = unique species that don't belong to other groups

Four Types of Gymnosperms

Multiple Choice

What adaptation allows conifers to thrive at high altitudes and cold climates?

• They have broad, fan-like leaves.

• They are green.

• They are tall.

• They have needle-shaped leaves.

Snow slides easily off needle-shaped leaves, keeping the load light and decreasing breaking of branches.

Needles also typically stay on the tree for 2 years so there is no wasted time growing new leaves in the spring. This speeds up photosynthesis.

Adaptation: Needle-Shaped Leaves

Multiple Choice

Gymnoperms can live in ANY habitat.

• True

• False

Gymnosperms occupy LARGE AREAS of the Earth, especially at high altitudes, equatorial regions, and in hot, dry climates. However, they're not in swampy nor marine habitats.

Habitat: (Almost) Everywhere