Question

Assertion: Algae and fungi are classified as thallophytes.
Reason: They both are autotrophs.
A. Both Assertion and Reason are correct and Reason is the correct explanation for the Assertion.
B. Both Assertion and Reason are correct and Reason is not the correct explanation for the Assertion
C. Assertion is correct but Reason is incorrect.
D. Both Assertion and Reason are incorrect.

Answer 1

Autotrophs are the organisms that prepare their own food, for example green plants. Plants make their food by the process of photosynthesis using sunlight, carbon dioxide and water. They convert light energy into chemical energy.

Complete answer: Algae comprises the most primitive, photosynthetic, thalloids i.e. their body is not differentiated into true stem, roots and leaves. They are predominantly aquatic but some are terrestrial and grow in moist places.
The plant body of algae is thallus which shows a great variation of forms. The multicellular forms may be palmelloid, coenobium, dendroid, siphonaceous, filamentous or foliaceous. Some of the foliaceous forms are complex and very large in size. The filamentous and foliaceous forms are attached to the substratum by means of hold fast. Some large complex forms have leaf-like photosynthetic lamina, middle stem-like stipe and basal hold fast. The algal thalli are flexible. Flexibility of thalli enables them to move with the water tides without being torn.
They are photoautotrophic in their mode of nutrition. They have chlorophyll in their chromatophores or chloroplasts.
Fungi are ubiquitous i.e. found in almost every habitat. They flourish well in the moist, dark and warm conditions. The plant body of fungi is unicellular or multicellular thallus. Acellular thallus may be motile or non-motile. Multicellular thallus is tubular, filamentous, branched and is called mycelium. The unit of mycelium is hypha.
Fungi lack chlorophyll and are unable to synthesize their own food by the process of photosynthesis. Therefore they have heterotrophic and absorptive modes of nutrition.
So, the correct answer is “Option C”.

Note: The term ‘Algae’ was coined by C. Linnaeus which means Sea weeds. Phycology is the study of algae and the study of fungi is called mycology. Father of mycology is Pier Antonio Micheli and father of Indian mycology and E. J. Butler.