SPOROPHYTES OF BRYOPHYTES

RICCIA:
• The sporophyte of Riccia is the simplest amount the liverworts and is
represented by a spherical spore-sac or capsule embedded on the dorsal
surface of the gametophyte and lacks foot and seta.
• The capsule has a protective covering of two layered calyptra which is a
part of the gametophyte.
• The capsule wall degenerates before the division of the spore mother cell
followed by degeneration of the inner layer of the calyptra.
• The spore mother cells are enveloped by a single layered jacket, the
capsule wall.
• The mature spores lie free in the cavity or sac surrounded by the outer layer
of calyptra which is anomaly in which the new gametophyte is housed in
the old gametophyte. There are no elaters.
• The mature sporophyte spore tetrads lie in a cavity enclosed by a single
layered calyptra.
• The mature meiospores are left behind on the soil by decay of the
surrounding tissues and are not dispersed. They can be carried by wind.

MARCHANTIA:
• The sporophyte of Marchantia is differentiated into foot, seta and capsule.
It hangs from the undersurface of the female receptacle.
• Foot is the basal bulbous absorptive anchoring organ to the disc of
archegoniophore. It absorbs the nourishment from gametophyte for
developing sporangium.
• Seta is very short and stout stalk which connects the foot to the capsule
and made of parenchyma cells. After the formation of the spore tetrads in
the capsule, the seta elongates slightly. Increase in the length of seta
ruptures the calyptra, pushing the capsule through sheaths – perigynium
and perichetium (involucre).
• Capsule is oval and yellow in colour, enclosed by sterile capsule wall with
ring-like thickening bands running anticlinally across the wall ends.
• Enclosed inside the capsule wall at maturity are a mass of meiospores and
elaters.
• The elaters are exceptionally long, slender cells with tapering ends with
double spirally thickened bands on their walls. They lack protoplasm at

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 maturity and are thus dead and are hygroscopic and help in spore dispersal.
Large number of spores are seen in capsule – 3,00,000 per capsule.
• The capsule is enveloped by the protective coverings – calyptra,
perigynium and perichetium.

PORELLA:
• Mature sporangium consists of foot, seta and capsule.
• The foot is less conspicuous, globular or oval and remains embedded in
the tissue of the stem of the archegonial branch of gametophyte.
• The seta is short and present in between the foot and the capsule. It is
made up of non-chlorophylous parenchyma cells.
• The capsule is spherical surrounded by a 3-4 celled thick wall - jacket,
which encloses the fertile spores and sterile elaters The elaters have two
apical thickening bands. Outer wall is polygonal with radial thickening
bands. Inner layer is radiatively thin and semilunar thickening bands.
• Three definite envelop (calyptra, perianth and involucre) surrounds the
sporophyte.
• The presence of basal elaterophore. It is made of 20 – 100 elongated elaters
which form the base of the capsule cavity towards apex.

ANTHOCEROS:
• The sporophyte is elongated structure present on the dorsal surface of the
thallus varying in length from 1-15 cms. The sporophyte appears like a
‘bristle’ or ‘horn’, hence, the species are called ‘hornworts.
• Young sporophyte is green but at maturity it is dark yellow or black.
• The mature sporophyte has a distinct foot and capsule.
• The foot is completely embedded in the gametophytic tissue and a capsule
appears as smooth, slender, erect, cylindrical structure on thallus.
• There is no distinct seta and an intercalary meristematic zone is present
between foot and capsule.
• Bulbous Foot is multicellular and made up of a mass of parenchymatous
cells. It acts as a haustorium and absorbs food and water from the adjoining
gametophytic cells for the developing sporophyte
• Meristematic zone or Intermediate zone or Intercalary zone: Seta is
represented by meristematic zone. This is present at the base of the capsule
and consists meristematic cells. These cells constantly add new cells to the

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 capsule at its base. The presence of meristem at the base enables the capsule
to grow for a long period and form spores. It is a unique feature of
Anthoceros and is not found in any other bryophyte. The maturity of spores
is from apex downwards in capsule.
• Capsule: Its internal structure can be differentiated into following parts:
• Capsule wall: It is composed of 4-6 layers of parenchyma cells.
Outermost layer is epidermis and is covered by thick layer of cuticle.
Epidermis has stomata with guard cells. The cells of the capsule
wall have chloroplast and thus is capable of synthesizing the food by
itself but is dependent on gametophyte for its wate and mineral
nutrients. The apical region has two or four shallow grooves and
capsule dehisces by this groove.
• Columella: It is central sterile part extending nearly to its tip. It is
made up of 16 vertical rows of thick-walled elongated cells. The
main function is to provide mechanical support to the elongated
capsule and help in dispersal of spores.
• Sporogenous tissue: It extends like a cylinder around the columella
from base to the tip. It overarches the columella like a Domb.
Archesporial cells gets differentiated into spores and pseudo-elaters.
The archesporial is single layered at the base but in upper region the
spore tetrads and pseudo-elaters are arranged in regular alternate
blocks. Pseudo-elaters are without characteristic thickenings.

NOTOTHYLUS :
• The sporophyte is of Notothylus can be placed under two categories namely
columellate (shows the presence of columella) and non-columellate
(without columella). [Link] and N. arbicularis are example of
columellate and N. levieri and N. flabellate are examples of non-
columellate.
• The sporophyte is cylindrical and tapering at both the ends and measures
2-3 microns in length and 0.5 microns in diameter and placed horizontally
along the margins of the thallus between the lobes and covered by
membranous involucre.
• Sporophyte is distinguished into foot, seta and capsule.
• The anchor shaped foot is made of parenchyma and embedded in
gametophytic tissue. Some become tubular and absorb nutrition from
gametophytic tissue

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 • The seta is represented by small narrow zone of meristematic zone
showing limited meristematic activity.
• Capsule has a wall made of four layers. Outermost is thick walled and
brown in colour without pores or stomata. The three subepidermal layers
have thin wall. It has no chlorophyll and hence completely dependent on
gametophyte for nutrition and water. The capsule wall encloses
sporogenous tissue.
• In columellate species the sporogenous tissue surrounds columella
but in non-columellate it completely occupies the cavity
• Sporogenous cells gets differentiated into fertile spore cells and sterile
cells arranged alternately in transverse rows. Spore mother cell undergoes
meiosis to give rise to spore tetrads dark brown in colour. Sterile cells form
unicellular elaters irregular in shape and curved thickened bands on their
walls.

SPHAGNUM:
• The mature sporophyte is differentiated into foot, seta and capsule.
• The foot is bulbous or cylindrical, haustorial in function and made
of parenchymatous cells.
• Seta is a neck-like inconspicuous narrow region between foot and
capsule
• Capsule is an almost spherical black to dark-brown.
• The whole sporophyte is covered by the calyptra. The lowest part of the
calyptra that covers the foot is called the vaginula.
• The perichaetial leaves are present below the sporophyte.
• The elongated archegonial branch at the base of the sporophyte is called
pseudopodium. It increases in length and pushes out the capsule above the
perichaetial leaves to facilitate the spreading of spores.
• The capsule in longitudinal section shows an outer jacket and middle
spore-sac with spores which overarches the dome-shaped inner columella.
• The capsule wall (jacket) is several layers thick (3-7 layers). The outermost
layer of the jacket is thick which bears several rudimentary non-
functional stomata. They contain chloroplasts
• The circular biconvex disc-shaped lid, called operculum, is present at the
top of the jacket. The operculum is delimited from the rest of the jacket by
a groove of thin-walled cells, called the annulus. At maturity the
operculum breaks off form annulus and helps in spore dispersal.

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FUNARIA:
• The mature sporophyte of Funaria is differentiated into a foot, a long seta
and a pear- shaped capsule at the tip.
• Foot: It is a poorly developed conical or dragger shaped, embedded
in the apex of archegonial branch.
• Seta: Seta is long, green in colour when young, but becomes reddish
brown at maturity. A section of seta shows a single-layered
epidermis, a central conducting strand of thin-walled cells
surrounded by a cortex made up of comparatively thick-walled cells.
Seta helps in conduction of nutrients and water from gametophyte to
capsule.
• Capsule: The mature capsule is pear shaped, slightly obliquely
placed (asymmetrical). It is erect green when young, at maturity it is
bright orange and curved. Internally, it is divided into three distinct
parts viz., the sterile basal region - the apophysis, the central
fertile region - the theca and the apical region.
▪ Apophysis: The lowermost part of the capsule is the
apophysis or the neck that connects it with the seta below. The
axis of the apophysis shows in the lower part a central strand
of thin-walled elongated cells connected with the similar
tissue of the seta. Loosely arranged chlorophyllous cells are
bounded by a rather thick-walled epidermis which is
interrupted by the stomata. The apophysis helps in
photosynthesis as the cells have chloroplast and hence the
sporophyte is not fully dependent on the gametophyte for
nutrition.
▪ The Theca or Fertile Zone: The central zone of the capsule
situated in between the apophysis and the operculum is called
the theca. It is a slightly bent cylindrical structure, fertile in
nature and has four distinct regions: (a) Capsule wall, (b)
Spore-sacs (c) Air chamber and (d) Columella
• (a) Capsule Wall: The capsule wall is many-layered.
The single-layered outermost wall forms the epidermis
which is followed by a 2-3 layered parenchymatous
hypodermis. The inner 2-3 layers of parenchymatous
cells are chlorophyllous, which constitute the
photosynthetic tissue of the capsule.
• (b) Spore Sacs: The columella is surrounded by two
elongated spore-sacs. The spore-sac has a inner wall of

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 one layer of small cells and an outer wall of 3 to 4 layers
of such cells. The spore sacs are formed from the single
layered archesporium out of 6-8 layers of sporogenous
cells. The sporogenous layer becomes a spore-sac by
the production of spores from spore mother cells
through meiotic divisions.
• (c) Air Chamber: The outer wall of the spore-sac is
followed by a big cylindrical air chamber. It is traversed
by strings of filaments of elongated green cells, known
as trabeculae which bridge the air space between the
outer wall of the spore-sac and the innermost layer of
the capsule wall.
• (d) Columella: It is the central, axial part of the fertile
zone, comprising of thin-walled, colourless, compact,
parenchymatous cells, constricted at the base just above
the apophysis. The distal part of the columella is cone-
shaped which projects into the concavity of the
operculum. The columella serves the purpose of
conduction of water and nutrients to the growing
sporophyte.
▪ The Apical Region: The apical region of the capsule is a
complicated structure. This joins the capsule proper through a
notch. An annular rim (or diaphragm) of 2-3 layers of radially
elongated small cells is present at this notch. The diaphragm
demarcates the upper limit of the theca proper. The operculum
is an obliquely placed, dome-shaped lid that closes the mouth
of the capsule. It is composed of 2 to 3 layers of thin-walled
parenchymatous cells. The lower part of the operculum forms
a ring of slightly large conspicuous cells, the annulus. The
operculum keeps the peristome teeth covered, while the
annulus helps in the dehiscence of the capsule. The peristome
teeth lies just below the operculum and are attached beneath
the edge of the diaphragm. It consists of two rings of long
triangular teeth, one within the other. The teeth are not cellular
in nature and are made up of cuticle. Each ring of peristome
possesses 16 teeth. The outer teeth (exostome) are larger,
thicker, and brown in colour and ornamented with transverse
thickening bands. The inner peristome teeth (endostome) are
small, delicate and of a pale colour. The whole structure is
called peristome which is epicranoid in nature, because the
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 outer peristome teeth are superposed on the inner ring. The
tapering distal ends of the outer peristome teeth are joined to
a centrally placed disc of tissue.

POLYTRICHUM:
• The mature sporophyte is differentiated into foot, seta and capsule.
• Foot: The foot is buried deep in the tissue of gametophyte. It is
absorptive in function. It consists of thin-walled narrow cells
containing dense cytoplasm.
• Seta: The seta is several inches long. It carries the capsule high into
the air. It also conducts water and food. It consists of epidermis, , a
sclerenchymatous hypodermis, cortex and central conducting
strands.
• Capsule: The upper part is capsule with quadrangular outline. It is
differentiated into three regions: apophysis, theca and operculum.
▪ 1. Apophysis: It is the lower part of capsule. It is continuous
with the seta. It is in the form of a swollen ring-like
protuberance. Its cells are thin-walled, green and loosely
arranged. The apophysis is the main photosynthetic region of
the capsule.
▪ 2. Theca: It is the middle part of the capsule. It is four-lobed.
Its wall is several layered. The outermost layer is epidermis.
Trabecular air spaces are present inside the wall layers. These
spaces have filaments of thin-walled elongated cells
containing chloroplasts. Outer spore sac wall is present
internal to outer trabecular spaces. This is followed by spore-
sac proper. Then 2-layered inner spore-sac wall is present.
Then inner trabecular air space is present. The centre is
occupied by solid columella. All the sporogenous cells are
fertile and form spores after reduction division.
▪ 3. Operculum: This is the uppermost part of the capsule. It is
conical. The operculum is covered by calyptra. The calyptra
forms a hairy structure. So Polytrichum is also known as ‘ hair
cap’ moss. A constriction is present between operculum and
theta. A rim or diaphragm is present at the base of this
constriction. The columella of the theca is continuous into the
operculum. It expands into a fan-shaped epiphragm.
Peristome is present in the form of a thick rim. It bears a

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number of rigid teeth. The epiphragm fills the space inside the
ring of peristome teeth and is attached to their tips. Peristome
teeth arise from the rim or diaphragm. Spores lie free in the
centre of the capsule at maturity and come out through pores.
They are dispersed by wind