INTRODUCTION

"Amphibian" comes from the Greek term- Amphibios

meaning (amphi- both sides + bios-life)
"both life / both kind of life
Most amphibians live on land and water(breed in water )
Amphibians evolved from lobe-finned fishes called
crossopterygians.
Biologist conclude that amphibians appeared during the
late Devonian period, about 345 million years ago.
Crossopterygian
Crossopterygians had no gills but they had internal nostrils and a
primitive lung that may have enabled them then to respire for periods of
time on land.
 GENERAL CHARACTERISTIC S OF AMPHIBIANS
Tetrapods- Have four limbs.
3-5 digits on forelimb (most 4)
5 digits on hind limb
Have an internal skeleton.
Glandular epidermis
Have soft, moist skin without any
dermal scales, fur or feathers.
Lose and gain water through
their skin.
Are cold-blooded.- Ectothermic.
Gills as larvae/juveniles, lungs
present but may degenerate,
some with dermal respiration
Live in moist habitats
As tadpole in water, they
breathe through gills, and as
adults they breathe with lungs.
(terrestrial)
Evolutionary adaptations for
life on land:
1. stronger bones
2. lungs and breathing tubes
3. sternum (breastbone) and
ribs to protect internal organs
 AMPHIBIANS
Kingdom - Animalia
Phylum - Chordata
Subphylum - Vertebrata
C lass - Amphibia
ORDERS
Anura eg: Frogs & Toads
Urodela (Caudata) eg: Salamanders and Newts
Trachystomata eg: Mud eels, sirens
Apoda (Gymnophiona)- eg: Caecillians
Temnospondyli (Subclass- Lepospondyli)-
extinct now
 SURVIVING AMPHIBIANS
ONLY THREE ORDERS

URODELA / CAUDATA (Salamanders and Newts)

ANURA (Frogs and Toads)

APODA / GYMNOPHIONA(Caecilians)
 INDIAN AMPHIBIAN SPECIES

Salamander : Tylototriton verrucosus (Himalayan)

Newts : Pleurodeles verrucosus (Himalayan newt)

Frog : Rana tigrina

Toads : Bufo melanostictus

Caecilian : Ichthyophis malabarensis

Order: Caudata (Urodela)
Families: 6
Ambystomatidae , Amphiumidae ,
Cryptobranchidae, Plethodontiade, Proteidae
and Salamandridae
Salamanders and Newt
Elongated bodies, long tails, and smooth, moist
skin , lives in moist woods
Internal fertilization
Paedomorphosis (retention by an organism
of juvenile or even larval traits into later
life) prevalent
 Order: Caudata (Urodela)
Other species can reproduce in damp
land environments

Eggs laid on land hatch into

miniature adult salamanders

Compared to the anurans,

salamanders are less able to remain
on dry land, although some can live
in dry areas by remaining inactive
during the day

Newt
 Necturus maculosus
Giant Japanese Salamander

Some Urodeles

Ambystoma
mexicanum
(Axolotl)

Southern dusky salamander

 Order: Anura
FAMILIES: 5
Bufonidae (toads); Hylidae(tree frog); Ranidae(true frog);
Microhylidae and Pelobatidae
Frogs & Toads- many similarities in the way they look.
Found on every continent except Antarctica
Frogs- smooth, wet skin , Associated with more aquatic habitats
Toads: Thicker dry, warty skins; Dryer habitats
Hop/jump with legs; Adult has no tail
Eggs- fertilized externally. The fertilized eggs hatch into swimming
larval forms called tadpoles
Some types spend their entire life in or near water, but others live
mainly on land and come to the water only to mate /reproduce
Some frogs and toads are climbers that dwell in trees or burrowers
that live underground.
Really Weird Surinam Toad
Rana catesbeiana Acris
crepitans

Bufo woodhousii Pseudacris clarki

Rana pipiens
 Order: Apoda (Gymnophiona) Characteristics
Compose a highly specialized group of tropical burrowing
amphibians - Caecilians
Superficially resemble earthworms or snakes.
Mostly live hidden in the ground, making them the least familiar
order of amphibians.
A tropical, burrowing worm-like amphibians that is often Legless
Legless wormlike creatures average 30 cm long, can be up to 1.3m
long. ; with fishlike scales
Very small eyes and are often blind.; Eat worms and other
invertebrates
Male deposits sperm directly into the female, and the female
bears live young
Order: Gymnophiona (Apoda)

Caecilians
 ORDER : TRACHYSTOMATA
An order of tailed aquatic
amphibians, including Siren
and Pseudobranchus.
Family: 1- Sirenidae
They have anterior legs
only, are eel-like in form
No teeth except a small
patch on the palate.
The external gills are
persistent through life.
Three living species of Mud
eels, sirens.
Sirens live in the eastern
United States and north-
eastern Mexico.
. SIREN
THANK YOU