Sorus - wikipedia Sorus Jump to : navigation , search For the villages in Azerbaijan , see Soru and Sors , Azerbaijan . The underside of a fertile frond of Dicksonia antarctica . Each circular brown structure is an individual sorus . A sorus ( pl . sori ) is a cluster of sporangia ( structures producing and containing spores ) in ferns and fungi . This New Latin word is from Ancient Greek σωρός ( sōrós ' stack , pile , heap ' ) . In lichens and other fungi , the sorus is surrounded by an external layer . In some red algae it may take the form of a depression into the thallus . In ferns , these form a yellowish or brownish mass on the edge or underside of a fertile frond . In some species , they are protected during development by a scale or film of tissue called the indusium , which forms an umbrella - like cover . Sori occur on the sporophyte generation , the sporangia within producing haploid meio spores . As the sporongia mature , the indusium shrivels so that spore release is unimpeded . The sporangia then burst and release the spores . The shape , arrangement , and location of the sori are often valuable clues in the identification of fern taxa . Sori may be circular or linear . They may be arranged in rows , either parallel or oblique to the costa , or randomly . Their location may be marginal or set away from the margin on the frond lamina . The presence or absence of indusium is also used to identify fern taxa . Gallery ( edit ) Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sorus . Sorus Phlebodium aureum 50x Scattered sori Linear sori Sori covering a frond 's entire underside ( acrostichoid ) Fern sorus with immature sporangia Circular sori with mature sporangia Sori with indusia at different stages of development . Fungal sori of the Meadowsweet Rust gall . Large sori Polypodium vulgare Sword fern . The indusia have opened , revealing the sporangia . Scale bar , 1 mm See also ( edit ) Sorocarp References and external links ( edit ) DiversityOfLife -- Fern identification tool . Encyclopædia Britannica : sorus 2007 . Encyclopædia Britannica Online . Retrieved 20 November 2007 . Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sorus&oldid=800083069 '' Categories : Plant anatomy Fungal morphology and anatomy Pteridophyta Talk About Wikipedia Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Eesti Español Esperanto فارسی Français Gaeilge Galego Bahasa Indonesia Italiano Nederlands Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 11 September 2017 , at 12 : 14 . Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply . By using this site , you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy . Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation , Inc. , a non-profit organization . About Wikipedia 
where are the spore containing sori of a fern found
A sorus ( pl . sori ) is a cluster of sporangia ( structures producing and containing spores ) in ferns and fungi . This New Latin word is from Ancient Greek σωρός ( sōrós ' stack , pile , heap ' ) . In lichens and other fungi , the sorus is surrounded by an external layer . In some red algae it may take the form of a depression into the thallus . In ferns , these form a yellowish or brownish mass on the edge or underside of a fertile frond . In some species , they are protected during development by a scale or film of tissue called the indusium , which forms an umbrella - like cover . Sori occur on the sporophyte generation , the sporangia within producing haploid meio spores . As the sporongia mature , the indusium shrivels so that spore release is unimpeded . The sporangia then burst and release the spores . The shape , arrangement , and location of the sori are often valuable clues in the identification of fern taxa . Sori may be circular or linear . They may be arranged in rows , either parallel or oblique to the costa , or randomly . Their location may be marginal or set away from the margin on the frond lamina . The presence or absence of indusium is also used to identify fern taxa . Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sorus . Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sorus . Sorus Phlebodium aureum 50x Scattered sori Linear sori Sori covering a frond 's entire underside ( acrostichoid ) Fern sorus with immature sporangia Circular sori with mature sporangia Sori with indusia at different stages of development . Fungal sori of the Meadowsweet Rust gall . Large sori Polypodium vulgare Sword fern . The indusia have opened , revealing the sporangia . Scale bar , 1 mm Sorus Phlebodium aureum 50x Sorus Phlebodium aureum 50x Scattered sori Linear sori Sori covering a frond 's entire underside ( acrostichoid ) Sori covering a frond 's entire underside ( acrostichoid ) Fern sorus with immature sporangia Fern sorus with immature sporangia Circular sori with mature sporangia Circular sori with mature sporangia Sori with indusia at different stages of development . Sori with indusia at different stages of development . Fungal sori of the Meadowsweet Rust gall . Fungal sori of the Meadowsweet Rust gall . Large sori Polypodium vulgare Sword fern . The indusia have opened , revealing the sporangia . Scale bar , 1 mm Sword fern . The indusia have opened , revealing the sporangia . Scale bar , 1 mm
on the edge or underside of a fertile frond on the edge or underside of a fertile frond on the edge or underside of a fertile frond