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A '''sporophyll''' is a [[leaf]] that produces [[spore]]s. Sporophylls are part of the [[diploid]] [[sporophyte]] generation, and the spores are produced by [[meiosis]] and will germinate to produce [[haploid]] [[gametophyte]]s. The spores are born in [[sporangia]], which can take various forms in different kinds of plants. The sporophylls themselves also vary greatly in appearance and structure, and may or may not look similar to the [[trophophyll]]s--leaves which only undergo [[photosynthesis]] to produce [[sugar]]s, never producing spores. In more primitive plants, such as [[lycophyte]]s and [[fern]]s, the sporophylls and trophophylls are both green and photosynthesize, and usually look very similar to each other. In more advanced plants, such as [[seed plant]]s--and a few unusual primitive plants such as [[Equisetum]]--the sporophylls and trophophylls are very different from each other. For instance, in [[pine]]s the sporophylls are modified to form both the woody [[bract]]s of pine cones (often called "ovuliferous scales") as well as the smaller, non-woody bracts of the pollen cones. In flowers the sporophylls are even further modified, and are represented by the [[stamen]]s and [[carpel]]s.
Small foliaceous structures bearing the sporangia in brown algae of the genus [[Alaria]] are also called "sporophylls", though structurally they are quite different from the sporophylls of [[vascular plant]]s.
[[Category:Botany]]
[[Category:Plant anatomy]]
Small foliaceous structures bearing the sporangia in brown algae of the genus [[Alaria]] are also called "sporophylls", though structurally they are quite different from the sporophylls of [[vascular plant]]s.
[[Category:Botany]]
[[Category:Plant anatomy]]