How does the Welwitschia mirabilis reproduce?
The Welwitschia mirabilis is a dioecious perennial plant with short stem and taproot. The woody stem widens with age to become a concave disc up to a meter across, from which grow small ramified branch systems that serve only to bare pollen and seed cones. The branched reproductive shoots arise near the leaf bases.
How is Welwitschia mirabilis pollinated?
Welwitschia is clearly not wind pollinated, as it produces smaller amounts of pollen, with the nectar to attract insects, and the flowers open in succession over an extended period, which also encourages cross-pollination.
What is strange about Welwitschia mirabilis?
The natural history of Welwitschia mirabilis reads like the account of an organism quite alien when compared to nearly all of the other plants and trees we are familiar with here on Planet Earth. The leaves continue growing for over 500 years, yet the plant produces only two of them in its entire lifetime.
How does the Welwitschia Mirabilis survive?
Welwitschias have several special adaptations that allow them to live in the desert. First, they have unique structures on their leaves that allow them to harvest moisture from the dew that forms at night. They also have the ability to to perform CAM photosynthesis; they are the only gymnosperm that have this ability.
Is Welwitschia mirabilis a flowering plant?
The plant is commonly known simply as welwitschia in English, but the name tree tumbo is also used. It is called kharos or khurub in Nama, tweeblaarkanniedood in Afrikaans, nyanka in Damara, and onyanga in Herero….
| Welwitschia | |
|---|---|
| Family: | Welwitschiaceae |
| Genus: | Welwitschia Hook.f. |
| Species: | W. mirabilis |
| Binomial name |
How is the Welwitschia plant adapted to the desert?
Is Welwitschia mirabilis dioecious?
The plants are dioecious, meaning female and male flowers occur on separate plants. Pollination is carried out by insects in the plant’s native range, and large colonies of W. Welwitschia mirabilis is dioecious (female and male flowers occur on separate plants). Our W.
How does welwitschia survive?
What conditions do Welwitschia mirabilis?
Welwitschia mirabilis is a long-lived evergreen in the hyperarid Namib Desert; at our study site, rainfall is rare (mean annual precipitation = 31 mm), groundwater deep (57–75 m), and fog frequent (50–90 events per year).
How old is the plant Welwitschia mirabilis?
The Welwitschia Mirabilis is a plant which is endemic to the Namib desert in Namibia and Southern Angola. Named after Friedrich Welwitsch who “discovered” the plant in 1859, some of the specimen are estimated to be between 1000 and 1500 years old.
What do the cones on a Welwitschia mirabilis look like?
As the plant matures, the stem broadens to a concave disc which can grow up to a metre in diameter and has small branch systems bearing seed cones and pollen. The small, oblong cones of the male plant have a salmon-hue while the larger more tapering female cones are a bluish-green. Both plants bear nectar and pollination is by insects.
How is the Welwitschia plant different from other plants?
Welwitschia is unusual in having a very condensed, unbranched stem and two persistent leaves that grow for the entire life of the plant. The plants are mostly dioecious, rarely monoecious. The ovules and microsporophylls are terminal borne in small compound, unisexual cones. The mature seeds are small to large.
What kind of animals eat the Welwitschia mirabilis plant?
At least the oryx antelopes, rhinos, zebras and other plant eaters won’t ask this question, as they like it so much – they could just eat it up. It’s also not rarity, as the Welwitschia occurs in an area of the Namib Desert that stretches over 1200 km from southern Angola to the mouth of the Kuiseb River.