The Nikon MicroscopyU confocal microscopy image gallery was created with a PCM-2000 confocal scanning system interfaced to a Nikon Eclipse E600 upright microscope. Images were recorded in successive z-axis serial sections with C-Imaging Systems software with excitation illumination provided by an argon-ion and/or a helium-neon laser.

	Interactive Java Tutorial
ATTENTION Our servers have detected that your web browser does not have the Java Virtual Machine installed or it is not functioning properly. Please install this software in order to view our interactive Java tutorials. Visitors using the Netscape and Microsoft Internet Explorer browsers can download the appropriate software from the websites where the browsers are distributed. Please do not contact us for information about specific URLs where this software can be obtained.

View a higher magnification confocal sequence of marchantia sporophytes.

These mature sporophytes are the asexual reproductive form for the Marchantia order of Bryophytes, moss-like plants of the division Bryophyta, also known as liverworts, or "liver plants." The thallus, part of the plants' anatomy, has the appearance of a lobed liver, which gave rise to the name. Bryophytes are ancient plants and have a worldwide distribution, but most commonly are found in the tropics. Liverworts don't contribute directly to the human economy, but do provide food for animals, facilitate the decay of fallen trees, and help disintegrate rocks.