Portal:Amphibians
Wikipedia portal for content related to Amphibians / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Portal maintenance status: (November 2018)
|
List of selected salamander articles |
---|
List of selected amphibian type articles |
---|
The Amphibian Portal
Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniotic, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all tetrapods, excluding the amniotes (tetrapods with an amniotic membrane, such as modern reptiles, birds, and mammals). All extant (living) amphibians belong to the monophyletic subclass Lissamphibia, with three living orders: Anura (frogs), Urodela (salamanders), and Gymnophiona (caecilians). Evolved to be mostly semiaquatic, amphibians have adapted to inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living in freshwater, wetland or terrestrial ecosystems (such as riparian woodland, fossorial and even arboreal habitats). Their life cycle typically starts out as aquatic larvae with gills known as tadpoles, but some species have developed behavioural adaptations to bypass this.
The young generally undergo metamorphosis from larva with gills to an adult air-breathing form with lungs. Amphibians use their skin as a secondary respiratory surface and some small terrestrial salamanders and frogs lack lungs and rely entirely on their skin. They are superficially similar to reptiles like lizards, but unlike reptiles and other amniotes, require water bodies in which to breed. With their complex reproductive needs and permeable skins, amphibians are often ecological indicators; in recent decades there has been a dramatic decline in amphibian populations for many species around the globe.
The earliest amphibians evolved in the Devonian period from sarcopterygian fish with lungs and bony-limbed fins, features that were helpful in adapting to dry land. They diversified and became ecologically dominant during the Carboniferous and Permian periods, but were later displaced in terrestrial environments by early reptiles and basal synapsids (mammal predecessors). The origin of modern amphibians belonging to Lissamphibia, which first appeared during the Early Triassic, around 250 million years ago, has long been contentious. However the emerging consensus is that they likely originated from temnospondyls, the most diverse group of prehistoric amphibians, during the Permian period. (Full article...)
Selected frog article
The southern frogs form the Leptodactylidae, a name that comes from Greek meaning a bird or other animal having slender toes. They are a diverse family of frogs that most likely diverged from other hyloids during the Cretaceous. The family has undergone major taxonomic revisions in recent years, including the reclassification of the former subfamily Eleutherodactylinae into its own family the Eleutherodactylidae; the Leptodactylidae now number 206 species in 13 genera distributed throughout Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. The family includes terrestrial, burrowing, aquatic, and arboreal members, inhabiting a wide range of habitats.
Several of the genera within the Leptodactylidae lay their eggs in foam nests. These can be in crevices, on the surface of water, or on forest floors. These foam nests are some of the most varied among frogs. When eggs hatch in nests on the forest floor, the tadpoles remain within the nest, without eating, until metamorphosis. (Full article...)Selected salamander article
Did you know? – show different entries
- ... that Lehmann's poison frog is not toxic in captivity because its poison derives from food it eats only in the wild?
- ... that the Brazil-nut poison frog (pictured) sometimes places its tadpoles in water-filled capsules that have fallen from the Brazil nut tree?
- ... that female gregarious slender salamanders often lay their eggs in communal nests?
- ... that toads found in Egypt around 1909 and identified as Degen's toad are now considered a separate species, the Nile Delta toad?
- ... that the recently named trematopid temnospondyl Fedexia was named after the shipping service FedEx, which owned the land where the holotype specimen was found?
Selected amphibian type
Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands.
A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scientific taxonomy, but is common in popular culture (folk taxonomy), in which toads are associated with drier, rougher skin and more terrestrial habitats. (Full article...)Selected images
- Image 1Photograph credit: Charles J. SharpMantella baroni, commonly known as Baron's mantella, variegated golden frog or Madagascar poison frog, is a species of frog in the family Mantellidae. It is native to Madagascar and is seen here in Ranomafana National Park in the southeastern part of the country. The species was described in 1888 by George Albert Boulenger, who named it after its collector, Richard Baron. It has been classified as a least-concern species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature due to its relatively wide distribution, but is threatened by habitat loss. The frog's diet includes mites, which cause it to accumulate a high alkaloid concentration in its skin, making it toxic. The bright colours may serve as a warning sign to potential predators of the frog's toxicity.
- Image 2Photograph credit: Charles James SharpThe marsh frog (Pelophylax ridibundus) is a species of amphibian native to Europe and parts of Asia. It is the largest type of frog in most of its range, growing to a snout-to-vent length of around 100 mm (4 in); tadpoles can reach up to 190 mm (7.5 in) in length, but this usually occurs in places with long winters where the tadpole has time to grow. Marsh frogs hibernate during the winter, either underwater or in burrows, and are able to use the Earth's magnetic field to locate breeding ponds. This marsh frog was photographed in Kampinos National Park, Poland.
- Image 3Photograph: Brian GratwickeThe Panamanian golden frog (Atelopus zeteki) is a rare species of toad endemic to Panama. First described by Emmett Reid Dunn in 1933, this species was found close to mountain streams on the eastern side of the Tabasará mountain range in Coclé and Panamá Provinces, but is now critically endangered and possibly extinct in the wild.
- Image 4The Eastern American Toad (Bufo americanus americanus) is a common subspecies of toad found throughout the eastern United States and Canada. It typically grows to 5–9 cm (2.0–3.5 in), with varying skin color and pattern depending on its environment. Its skin secretes bufotoxin, which is mildly poisonous to humans.
- Image 5Atelopus certus is a species of toad endemic to the Darién Province of eastern Panama. Much of its range falls within the Darién National Park, a protected area and World Heritage Site. It is classified as endangered, primarily due to the advancing wave of chytridiomycosis moving through Central America.
- Image 6Photo credit: Carey James BalboaThe Red-eyed Tree Frog (Agalychnis callidryas) is a small-sized tree frog, reaching lengths of about 5 to 7 centimeters (3 inches), native to Neotropical rainforests in Central America. They are not poisonous and rely on camouflage to protect them. During the day, they remain motionless with their colorful parts hidden. Thus, they appear almost completely green, and well hidden among the foliage.
- Image 7In the life cycle of a frog, a female lays her eggs in a shallow pond or creek, where they will be sheltered from the current and from predators. The eggs, known as frogspawn hatch into tadpoles. The tadpoles develop gradually into adolescent froglets and finally the froglet develops into an adult frog.
- Image 8The fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) is a European salamander species with a long lifespan. These nocturnal animals generally eat various insects, spiders, earthworms and slugs, but they also occasionally eat newts and young frogs.
- Image 9Photo credit: Patrick CoinA terrestrial subadult Eastern newt or red eft (Notophthalmus viridescens). Salamanders of the family Salamandridae with aquatic adult stages are called newts. Some newts, including the Eastern newt, have a juvenile terrestrial stage called the eft. The red eft has bright aposematic coloration to warn predators of its highly toxic skin.
- Image 10The edible frog (Pelophylax kl. esculentus) is a fertile hybrid of the pool and marsh frogs which is commonly found in Europe. The species is commonly used in food, including the French delicacy frog legs.
- Image 11Photo credit: LiquidGhoulThe New England Tree Frog (Litoria subglandulosa) is a species of frog native to the streams of the New England Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia.
- Image 12Photograph: Benny TrappThe Albanian water frog (Pelophylax shqipericus) is a species of true frog in the family Ranidae. It is native to Albania and Montenegro, where it lives in aquatic environments. The frogs are medium-sized. Males sometimes bear a distinctive bright green stripe down the length of the backbone, but otherwise are green to light brown in overall colouring with large black or dark brown spots. Females are olive green or light brown in colour and also bear brown or black large spots. The species is endangered and known populations are currently in decline.
- Image 13Common toads in amplexusPhoto: Bernie KohlTwo common toads (Bufo bufo) in amplexus, a form of pseudocopulation found in amphibians and limulids. A male common toad grasps a female with his front legs as part of the mating process. Common toads stay in amplexus for several days. As the female lays a long, double string of small black eggs, the male fertilises them with his sperm; the gelatinous egg strings, which may contain 3000 to 6000 eggs and be 3 to 4.5 metres (10 to 15 ft) in length, are later tangled in plant stalks.
- Image 14Photograph: Benny TrappThe Spanish painted frog (Discoglossus jeanneae) is a species of frog in the family Alytidae. Endemic to Spain, it mostly lives in open areas, pine groves and shrublands. It feeds mostly on insects and worms.
- Image 15Illustration credit: Ernst HaeckelA frog is an amphibian characterized by long hind legs, a short body, webbed digits, protruding eyes and the absence of a tail. Frogs are most noticeable through their call, which can be widely heard during the mating season. It is estimated that up to 20% of amphibian species may care for their young in one way or another, and there is a great diversity of parental behaviours. For example, frogs in the Gastrotheca genus (upper left) carry their eggs in a pouch, and females of the Eleutherodactylus lineatus species (center left) carry their young on their back.
Selected toad article
Selected caecilian article
Potamotyphlus kaupii (also known as Kaup's caecilian) is a species of amphibian in the family Typhlonectidae. It is monotypic within the genus Potamotyphlus. It is found widely in the Amazon Basin and the Guianas in South America, and is known to occur in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, and possibly Bolivia. It is an entirely aquatic species and typically ranges between 30 and 60 cm (12–24 in) in length.
Their most common causes of death are dermatitis and skin lesions. The chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, can also threaten them, as it does to many other amphibian biodiversity all over the world. (Full article...)Need help?
Do you have a question about Amphibians that you can't find the answer to?
Consider asking it at the Wikipedia reference desk.
Topics
Subcategories
Related portals
Associated Wikimedia
The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:
-
Commons
Free media repository -
Wikibooks
Free textbooks and manuals -
Wikidata
Free knowledge base -
Wikinews
Free-content news -
Wikiquote
Collection of quotations -
Wikisource
Free-content library -
Wikiversity
Free learning tools -
Wiktionary
Dictionary and thesaurus