Practicing Success

Target Exam

CUET

Subject

Biology

Chapter

Sexual Reproduction in Flowering Plants

Question:

Read the sentence and answer the questions.

Plants utilize both abiotic and biotic agents for pollination. Abiotic agents include wind and water, while biotic agents mainly involve insects, particularly bees.Wind pollination relies on lightweight and non-sticky pollen grains that can be easily carried by air currents. Plants adapted for wind pollination often have exposed stamens for efficient dispersion of pollen. Their stigmas are usually large and feathery to capture airborne pollen grains. Grasses are a common example of plants that rely on wind pollination.Water pollination occurs in aquatic plants such as Vallisneria, Hydrilla, and marine seagrasses like Zostera. These plants release their pollen into the water, where it is transported to female flowers for fertilization. Some aquatic plants, like hyacinths and water lilies, have flowers that emerge above the water level and can be pollinated by insects or wind.Among the biotic agents, insects, especially bees, play a dominant role in pollination. Insect-pollinated flowers are often large, colorful, fragrant, and rich in nectar to attract pollinators. In some cases, flowers provide additional benefits to the insects, such as safe places for egg-laying. An example of this is the Amorphophallus, which offers tall flowers serving as a safe spot for egg deposition. A similar mutualistic relationship exists between certain species of moths and the Yucca plant, where both species are dependent on each other for their life cycles to be completed successfully.

Grasses show pollination by :

Options:

Water

Insect

Wind

Animals

Correct Answer:

Wind

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option (3): Wind

Wind pollination is common in grasses because grasses have several features that make them well-suited for this type of pollination. These features include:

Lightweight pollen grains. The pollen grains of grasses are very lightweight, which allows them to be carried long distances by the wind.

Non-sticky pollen grains. The pollen grains of grasses are not sticky, which means that they do not easily attach to other objects. This is important because it allows the pollen grains to be carried by the wind without getting stuck on anything.

Inconspicuous flowers. The flowers of grasses are small and inconspicuous, which means that they are not attractive to insects. This is important because insects are not needed for pollination in wind-pollinated plants.

Large stigmas. The stigmas of grasses are large and feathery, which makes it more likely that pollen grains will land on them.

These features make grasses well-suited for wind pollination, and as a result, wind pollination is the most common type of pollination in grasses.