The Probert Encyclopaedia of Nature

SPORE

A spore is a reproductive cell that can develop into an individual without first fusing with another reproductive cell. Plants, fungi, bacteria, and some Protozoa produce spores. A spore may develop into an organism resembling the parent or into another stage in the life cycle, either immediately or after a period of dormancy. In plants showing alternation of generations, spores are formed by the sporophyte generation and give rise to the gametophyte generation. In ferns, the rows of brown reproductive structures on the under-surface of the fronds are spore producing bodies.
Research Spore