The presence of stilt roots, pneumatophores, sunken stomata and salt glands are adaptive features of plants found in the

1. Analyze the question You are asked which habitat has plants with four features: stilt roots, pneumatophores, sunken stomata and salt glands. Each feature is a clue to the environment.

2. Explain the concepts

• Stilt roots (prop roots): These grow from the stem and branches into the soil. They anchor the plant in soft, shifting mud and waterlogged ground. Example: Rhizophora (red mangrove).
• Pneumatophores (breathing roots): These grow upward out of waterlogged, oxygen-poor mud and take in air for respiration. Example: Avicennia (black mangrove).
• Salt glands: These excrete excess salt absorbed from salty or brackish water.
• Sunken stomata: These reduce water loss. Water is hard to absorb from saline soil (physiological drought), so the plant conserves it.

3. Step-by-step solution

• Soft, waterlogged mud needs stilt roots for support.
• Oxygen-poor mud needs pneumatophores for gas exchange.
• Salty water needs salt glands to get rid of salt.
• Difficulty absorbing water from saline soil needs sunken stomata to cut water loss.

All four features point to a coastal, salty, muddy, waterlogged habitat, which is a mangrove swamp, such as those in the Niger Delta.

Checking the other options:

• A. Tropical rainforest: It has plenty of fresh water and well-aerated soil. Buttress roots are common, but not pneumatophores or salt glands.
• C. Grassland: The soil is dry and well-drained. Plants have fibrous roots, not these features.
• D. Montane forest: This is a cool, high-altitude habitat with no salt or waterlogging problem.

4. Answer

B. mangrove swamps

5. Exam tip

Link each feature to its problem: stilt = support, pneumatophore = pneumonia/breathing, salt gland = salt removal. If you see "salt" or "pneumatophores" in a question, think mangrove straight away.