Evolution and Development of the Earliest Land Plant Rooting Systems

Explore the fascinating evolution of early land plant rooting systems in this 54-minute lecture from the Santa Fe Institute. Delve into the key innovation that occurred when plants first colonized land over 400 million years ago, and discover how this development dramatically impacted the Earth's carbon cycle and global climate. Learn about the importance of rooting systems for land plants, from nutrient uptake to anchorage. Examine the morphological similarities between early rhizoids and modern root hairs, and trace the development of specialized multicellular rooting structures. Gain insights into cutting-edge research combining fossil evidence and genetic studies to unravel the evolutionary history of plant root systems. Understand how regulatory mechanisms controlling root development have been preserved or independently evolved across different plant lineages over 300 million years. By synthesizing paleontological, genetic, and developmental evidence, construct a comprehensive picture of rooting system evolution during the first 100 million years of land plant colonization and radiation across continental surfaces.