NEET BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Two of the most fundamental means of seed dispersal are wind and water, these vectors carry light seeds to various places where they can germinate. Animals and birds also play a key role in the dispersal of seeds as they carry seeds away from their parent plant for germination.

Detailed explanation-2: -Seeds dispersed by water are found in light and buoyant fruits, while those dispersed by wind may have specialized wing-like appendages. Animals can disperse seeds by excreting or burying them; other fruits have structures, such as hooks, that attach themselves to animals’ fur.

Detailed explanation-3: -Wind, water, gravity, ballistic (where the seeds are ejected by forceful and often explosive mechanisms) and animals are the main ways seeds are dispersed.

Detailed explanation-4: -Wind dispersal Seeds from plants like dandelions, swan plants and cottonwood trees are light and have feathery bristles and can be carried long distances by the wind. Some plants, like kauri and maple trees, have ‘winged’ seeds. They don’t float away but flutter to the ground.

Detailed explanation-5: -Examples include mangoes, guavas, breadfruit, carob, and several fig species. In South Africa, a desert melon (Cucumis humifructus) participates in a symbiotic relationship with aardvarks-the animals eat the fruit for its water content and bury their own dung, which contains the seeds, near their burrows.