More stomata are found on the lower surface of the leaf than on the upper surface. Contrastly, a cuticle is fo

Question

More stomata are found on the lower surface of the leaf than on the upper surface. Contrastly, a cuticle is found on the upper surface, but not the lower surface. Explain why this might be the case.

Answer 1

Stomata are found on the lower surface of the leaf, while a waxy cuticle is on the top of the leaf, to minimize transpiration. Transpiration is the evaporation of water, and to minimize water loss, the openings are on the bottom of hte leaf, so the sun will not increase evaporation, while a waxy cuticle, which, being a lipid, resists water, prevents water from evaporating from the top of the leaf

Answer 2

The upper surface has more exposure to the sun and the wind, so the upper surface would be prone to losing more water through transpiration. Having the stomata underneath and the waxy cuticle on top makes good water conservation sense.

Answer 3

Lower leaf surface have more stomata than upper surface so as to reduce the excess water loss during transpiration as lower surface is in shade as compared to upper surface. This reduces chances of drying up of leaves and therefore plant as a whole.