### bryophyte:

Moss
* All mosses show alteration of generations.
* Many mosses are monoecious - Male and female in same plant
  - quite resistant to desiccation
  - assimilate much of their nutrients and water through their tiny leaves
  - grow in compact colonies or mingled with other vegetation
* Most moss grows in environments
  - on trees
* Most mosses form a stalk first
  - grow in short clumps, or cushions
  - prefer a medium to fairly dense shade
* Some moss absorbs water
  - grows in lawns
* Some moss has centers
  - costae
  - differentiations
* Some moss has growth habits
  - patterns
  - independent sporophytes
  - moisture retention ability
  - roots
  - strands
  - thin stalks
  - tissue differentiations
* Some moss has upright growth habits
  - vascular tissue
  - increases acidity
  - lacks tissue
  - makes food
* Some moss produces multicellular organs
  - sex organs
  - shows tissue differentiations
* Some mosses also have solute-conducting leptoids surrounding a central bundle of hydroids
  - can survive dessication, returning to life within a few hours of rehydration
  - depend on insects to transport spores
* Some mosses have conducting cells that function like the vascular tissue of higher plants
  - internal conducting strands that guide water and even metabolites through the stem
  - small branches
* abound on creek banks, wetland soils, and tree-trunk bases.
* also belong to the bryophyte division of the plant kingdom.
* also have different mechanisms they use for acquiring nutrients
  - root like rhizoids which do provide for some water absorption
  - lack true roots, stems, and leaves
* appear at the base of trees and on the ground.
* are a group of primitive plant species that can form a creeping green mat on home lawns.
* are abundant due to high moisture and deep shade
  - in both bogs and fens
  - adapted to grow in extremely dry climates, such as the desert
  - also essential to the formation of peat
* are an adaptable and diverse group, easily collected for study
  - amazingly resilient and versatile group of plants
  - at the base of the food chain in the tundra biome
  - classified in the division Bryophyta, class Bryopsida
  - evergreen plants
  - flowerless plants with very tiny leaves and no roots
  - found on damp, well-shaded soil, and occasionally along the sides of tree trunks
* are more common relatives of liverworts and share many features of their life cycle
  - complex than liverworts
  - prevalent in northern latitudes
  - most abundant in lower Railroad Canyon
  - non-vascular
* are nonvascular plants
  - while ferns are vascular
* are often abundant in moist areas, world wide
  - epiphytes
* are plants growing in tufts or clusters on the ground, decaying wood or on rocks
  - that develop from spores rather than seeds
  - primitive bryophytes in which the sporophyte and gametophyte generations grow together
  - primitive, nonflowering, rootless green plants with simple stems and leaves
* are seedless nonvascular plants
  - similar to ferns in that they produce spores
* are small and generally grow in moist habitats
  - plants that survive in a wide range of soil and weather conditions
* are small, leafy plants which look like a mass of fine stems
  - thread-like plants that form green mats on the soil surface
  - sports of centifolia and damask roses
  - the closest living relatives to the early plants that invaded the land
* are the most common and familiar nonvascular plants
  - primitive living land plants
  - too short and dense to support resting mosquitos
* are very primitive plants without a higher evolved vascular system
  - sensitive to air pollution and are used to monitor air quality
  - small green plants
* attach to their substrate with multi cellular rhizoid
  - multicellular rhizoids
* can tolerate complete dehydration.
* carpet the surface of rocks and cause further erosion into rock particles and gravel.
* cloak tree trunks and drape from the limbs like green shrouds.
* come in a wide variety of forms, but all are based on a stem and leaf structure.
* contribute significantly to above-ground production and phytomass in the region.
* create organic matter and make the local habitat more suitable for seed-bearing plants.
* custom blender of high-quality soil mixes for the wholesale nursery industry.
* decompose rocks and release nitrogen.
* decorate the platy outcrops, ledges, and isolated rocks.
* die and return nitrogen to the soil.
* do grow in sunlight but usually prefer shaded, moist areas.
* fix nitrogen from the air.
* flow over the rocks of the forest floor like rippling water under the sea.
* form deep cushions, covering the ground as well as tree trunks and branches
  - diminutive gametophytes, which are the dominant phase of the lifecycle
* grow in clumps and have only simple leaves
  - spreading mats or in tightly packed cushions
  - just about anywhere that it is wet enough, including on trees
  - throughout the rain forest
* growing in the creek have manganese oxide plaques on their exterior tissues.
* harbor cyanobacteria that fix nitrogen.
* have a low demand for nutrients
  - an erect shoot bearing tiny leaflike structures arranged in spirals
  - cuticle
  - essentially the same system
  - few or no stems
  - tiny leaves and stems
  - two phases in their life cycle
* includes cell membranes
  - cytoplasm
  - nuclei
  - sections
  - vacuoles
* increase the amount of water soil can store and improve soil's nutrient holding capacity.
* is bryophytes.
* is located in bridges
  - forests
  - waterfalls
* lack the roots and stems that other plants have.
* live in moist environments where water is freely available.
* lives in habitats
  - shady habitats
  - terrestrial habitats
* love to be kept moist, but too much moisture without any sunlight can cause mold.
* often grow so close together that they form pads, or cushions.
* play many different roles around the world.
* produce a thick, green mass in full sun or shade on both dry and wet soils
  - sexually by forming spores
* rely on diffusion to move materials into and out of their cells.
* reproduce by spores that are scattered in the wind or rain
  - in an unusual way
  - with spores or by forming gametes
* require abundant water for growth and reproduction.
* typically form a thick, green mat on the soil surface.
* use spores to reproduce.
* usually are found growing on rocks within the bodies of water.