Q.Explain the asexual reproduction in Rhizopus.

Step 1. Where the reproductive structures form. Under favourable conditions, Rhizopus produces erect sporangiophores - unicellular, unbranched, multinucleate aerial hyphae - that arise exactly opposite the region of the mycelium where the rhizoids are formed.

Step 2. What each sporangiophore bears. Each sporangiophore bears a single, bag-like sporangium at its tip. Inside the sporangium there is a sterile central region called the columella, and the actual spores (sporangiospores) are produced packed around this columella.

Step 3. How the spores are released. When the sporangium matures, its outer wall breaks open; the columella then collapses, and this releases the sporangiospores it had been supporting. …

Walk through the sequence: sporangiophore formation -> sporangium and columell …

• Confusing the sporangiophore (the stalk) with the sporangium (the spore-bearing sac) at its tip. …