Marchantia Thallus — Annotated Structure

Key Structural Features

Dorsal (Upper) Surface:

• Polygonal areoles (air chambers visible as patterns)
• Simple barrel-shaped air pores (NOT stomata — no guard cells)
• Gemma cups — cup-shaped structures containing gemmae (asexual reproductive bodies)
• Green colour (photosynthetic)

Ventral (Lower) Surface:

• Smooth rhizoids — unicellular, thin-walled, for water absorption
• Pegged (tuberculate) rhizoids — unicellular, with internal pegs, for anchorage
• Ventral scales — protect the ventral rhizoids

NEET Identification Points

• Gemma cups = ONLY in Marchantia (liverwort) — asexual reproduction
• Gemmae = haploid (n) — develop from gametophyte tissue
• Gemmae → grow into new gametophytes WITHOUT fertilization
• Rhizoids ≠ True roots (no vascular tissue; unicellular)

Comparison: Marchantia vs Funaria