-218 



GENERAL BIOLOGY 



are 



end. There is a small appendage called a vesicle which contains starch 

 granules. As the antheridia ripen, the sperm-sac is forced open and the 

 sperm discharged. It is important that this sperm-sac be not confused 

 with the spore-capsule to be mentioned later. 



The branches bearing archegonia are called archegoniophores and 

 usually found toward the upper portion of the plant, while the 

 a archegonia themselves are at the tip 



of the archegoniophores. (Fig. 113.) 

 Each archegonia has a neck, neck- 

 canal, a venter which contains the egg, 

 and a basal or pedicel. The archegonia 

 of ferns will be found to be quite like 

 this, except that the pedicel is missing. 

 Usually, several archegonia are found 

 on a single branch. A number of en- 

 larged leaves surround the archegonia. 

 They constitute a perichaetium 



Fig. 112. 



The Antheridium of a 

 Common Moss 



( Funaria ) . 

 a., Antheridium ; b., 

 escaping sperms ; c., 



a single sperm in its 

 parent cell. 

 Sachs.) 



(After 



Both archegonial and antheridial 

 branches begin growing close together Fig ng 



but the main branch from \vhich both Archegonium of 



Sphagnum, 



develop continues growing between showing a young em- 



tVifMn nnH cp>rn refiner tVi^i-n f nrtViP>r- onrl bryo sporophyte (em.) 



tner alia developing in the ven- 

 ter. ( After Schimper.) 



H c^rn r^ finer tln^ivi furtViPn- o 



a separating tnem lurtner 

 further 



Fertilization probably occurs in winter as young embryos are found 

 in abundance in the spring. A film of w r ater is needed for this purpose 



Fig. 114. The Sporophyte of the Peat Moss 



(Sphagnum). 



A., group of the sporophytes on stalks, which are 

 really growths from the gametophyte. B., longi- 

 tudinal section through a sporophyte, showing the 

 large foot imbedded in the top of the stalk ; a., the 

 remains of the parent archegonium. with the neck 

 still present; s., a spore chamber; c., cover. (From 

 Bergen & Davis' "Principles of Botany," by permis- 

 sion of Ginn & Co., Publishers.) 



