Fern plants. Like all other vascular plants, the diploid sporophyte is the dominant phase or generation in the life cycle. The gametophytes of ferns, however, are very different from those of seed plants. They are free-living and resemble liverworts, whereas those of seed plants develop within the spore wall and are dependent on the parent sporophyte for their nutrition. A fern gametophyte typically consists of: Ferns first appear in the fossil record in the early Carboniferous period. By the Triassic, the first evidence of ferns related to several modern families appeared. The great fern radiation occurred in the late Cretaceous, when
Rube Ferns BBBC recognized this title as both the American and World Welterweight boxing title in their 2004 Boxing Yearbook. Continuing to establish his legacy as the Welterweight Championship, Ferns defeated Matty Matthews on August 30, 1900 at the Lightguard Armory in Detroit, Michigan in a fifteen-round points decision. The "Detroit Free Press" wrote, "Rube Ferns demonstrated that he is a hard hitting, game and dangerous man and clearly entitled to the honor which he now holds, that of welterweight champion." In two rematches with Matthews for the World Title, Ferns lost on October 16, 1900 in a full fifteen round points