Amphibia

Introduction to the Amphibia

At least, we don't think you'll get warts from our server. . . Anyway, the Amphibia include some familiar creatures: the frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders. Some not-so-familiar creatures, like the legless, burrowing caecilians, are also amphibians. As suggested by their name, which means "double life" in Greek, amphibians spend at least part of their lives in water; some are entirely aquatic.

Did you know amphibians include...
frogs, toads, salamanders and caecilians. The word means double life--many species spend part of their life in aquatic (water) and terrestrial (land) environments. Because their skin lacks a shell, scales or outer drier covering, most amphibians live in wet or damp situations to prevent dehydration.
Did you know metamorphosis is when...
various animals undergo major changes in their body appearance and structure as they grow. They undergometa (change) in their morpho (form). For instance, frogs lay eggs which grow into tadpoles, which undergo a dramatic change into froglets and finally grow to be an adult frog. The key thing in metamorphosis is a rapid, drastic change in form, for example from the tadpole to the frog. Butterflies are another example of animals that undergo metamorphosis, from a caterpillar to a flying butterfly.
Did you know a bio-indicator is...
a living (bio means life) creature that is indicating or telling you something about the area that it lives in. It can be something positive (good) or negative (bad). For example, having lots of frogs in an area tells you and scientists that the environment is healthy and complete for the frogs. If for some reason frogs are suddenly missing from an area or their population is declining (shrinking), then this is telling you that their environment is changing. Sometimes bio-indicators can be used to show us that the quality of the air we breathe or water we drink may not be of a high quality.