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Tuesday 23 August 2011

Amphibian

Amphibians are members of the class Amphibia. They are four-legged vertebrates which are cold blooded.

There are three living orders. 

Tailed amphibians, consisting of the salamanders, including newts

Tailless amphibians, which includes frogs and toads

Caecilians, which are worm-like amphibians that are limbless and blind

The number of known amphibian species is approximately 7,000, of which nearly 90% are frogs.

Frog Pixiebay

Like reptiles, amphibians are described as cold-blooded; body temperature varies with the temperature of the environment and is generally much lower than that of birds and mammals.

Unlike reptiles, amphibians have no scales, and most must stay close to water to survive. 

Most amphibians live in warm, moist regions, but a few live in the Temperate Zone, with some frogs ranging far north. 

The smallest living amphibian is a frog from New Guinea with a length of just 7.7 mm (0.3 in).

The largest living amphibian is the 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) Chinese giant salamander, but this is dwarfed by the extinct 9 m (30 ft) Prionosuchus from Brazil.

 There's a recently discovered fingernail-size frog that can morph its skin texture from spiny to smooth in just minutes and is the first shape-shifting amphibian ever found.

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