Pollen Is Not Plant Sperm (It’s MUCH Weirder)
Plant pollen is everywhere in springtime, but because it is so small, you probably don't know that what is making you sneeze is a living, breathing, mobile version of the plant that forms half of the it's entire bizarre life cycle.
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (tracking.swap.fm) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
To learn more about this topic, start your googling with these keywords:
- Alternation of generations: a life cycle in plants where an organism alternates between two distinct multicellular stages.
- Gametophyte: the gamete-producing and usually haploid phase, producing the zygote from which the sporophyte arises. It is the dominant form in bryophytes.
- Pollination: the transfer of pollen to a stigma, ovule, flower, or plant to allow fertilization.
- Sporophyte: the asexual and usually diploid phase, producing spores from which the gametophyte arises. It is the dominant form in vascular plants, e.g. the frond of a fern.
MinuteEarth is produced by Neptune Studios LLC
If you like what we do, you can help us!
- Become our patron: https://patreon.com/MinuteEarth
- Sign up to our newsletter: http://news.minuteearth.com
- Share with your friends and family
- Leave us a comment (we read them!)
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices