How to use this outline: These are study topics grouped under BOT-504 on PreachBio. The institution and official syllabus edition have not been established here. Confirm the course code, credit hours, prescribed books and examination requirements with your department.

Course Title: Bot-504

Credit Hours: 3 (2+1)

Diversity Of Vascular Plants Course Code Bot-504

Specific Objectives:

  • Understand the diversity of vascular plants.
  • Appreciate the biology and evolution of plant architecture.

Course Outline:

A) Pteridophytes

  • Introduction, origin, history, features, and generalized life cycle.
  • Methods of fossilization, types of fossils, geological time scale, importance of paleobotany.
  • Early land-plant fossils, including Cooksonia; evidence for vascular tissue and fossil relationships.

  • General characters, relationships and evolutionary trends of the following traditional course groups (check modern classification alongside these names):

    Psilopsida (Psilotum)
  • Lycopsida (Lycopodium, Selaginella)
  • Sphenopsida (Equisetum)
  • Pteropsida (Ophioglossum, Dryopteris, Azolla/Marsilea)

B) Origin and Evolution of Seed Habit

  • Transition from spore-bearing plants to seed plants.

C) Gymnosperms

  • Geological history, origin, distribution, morphology, anatomy, classification, and affinities of:
  • Cycadofillicales
  • Bennettitales
  • Ginkgoales
  • Cycadales
  • Gnetales
  • Distribution of gymnosperms in Pakistan.
  • Economic importance of gymnosperms.
  • Introduction to Gondwana flora of the world.

D) Angiosperms

  • Origin, general characteristics, importance, and life cycle of angiosperms.

E) Palynology

  1. Introduction to Neopalynology and Paleopalynology, applications in:

  • Botany
  • Geology
  • Archaeology
  • Criminology
  • Medicine
  • Honey & oil and gas exploration

  1. Nomenclature, morphology, and classification of living and fossil pollen and spores.

Laboratory Outline:

  1. Study morphological and reproductive features of available genera.
  2. Field trips across Pakistan for collection and identification of pteridophytes, gymnosperms, and angiosperms.
  3. Study of pollen morphology.

Further study

For fossil plants: W. N. Stewart and G. W. Rothwell, Paleobotany and the Evolution of Plants, second edition, Cambridge University Press (1993). For a free introduction, use OpenStax Biology 2e: Early Plant Life.

Journals / Periodicals:

  • Pakistan Journal of Botany
  • New Phytologist
  • Review of Palaeobotany & Palynology
  • Palaeontographica
  • Palaeobotanist