as storage organs for carbohydrates and the maintenance of meristem tissue to keep the parent plant alive from one year to the next. In mycology In mycology, a stolon is defined as an occasionally septate hypha, which connects sporangiophores together. Root-like structures called rhizoids may appear on the stolon as well, anchoring the hyphae to the substrate. The stolon is commonly found in bread molds, and are seen as horizontally expanding across the mold. In zoology Some bryozoans form colonies through connection of individual units by stolons. Other colonies include sheets and erect colonies. Some colonial Cnidaria develop as stolons with interconnected medusoid structures that later separate. Some worm-like animals, such as certain Polychaeta in the genus Myrianida, form stolons containing eggs or sperm which they trail behind the main body. Palaeontology Stolon based reproduction is thought to have been used by Rangeomorphs in the Ediacaran age. See also References Plant morphology Plant reproduction