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The smallest amphibian (and vertebrate) in the world is a frog from New Guinea (Paedophryne amauensis) with a length of just 7.7 mm (0.30 in). The largest living amphibian is the 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) South China giant salamander ( Andrias sligoi ), but this is dwarfed by prehistoric temnospondyls such as Mastodonsaurus which could reach up to 6 m ...
The world’s frogs, salamanders, newts and other amphibians remain in serious trouble. A new global assessment has found that 41% of amphibian species that scientists have studied are threatened ...
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 ).
Because amphibians generally have a two-staged life cycle consisting of both aquatic and terrestrial phases, they are sensitive to both terrestrial and aquatic environmental effects. Because their skins are highly permeable, they may be more susceptible to toxins in the environment than other organisms such as birds or mammals. [9]
Animal migration is the relatively long-distance movement of individual animals, usually on a seasonal basis. It is the most common form of migration in ecology. It is found in all major animal groups, including birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and crustaceans. The cause of migration may be local climate, local availability ...
Their diet varies considerably as well: some may eat zooplankton; others may eat fish, squid, shellfish, and sea-grass; and a few may eat other mammals. In a process of convergent evolution , marine mammals such as dolphins and whales redeveloped their body plan to parallel the streamlined fusiform body plan of pelagic fish .
Wildlife on the Pacific coast of the United States is home to many different families of animals, such as birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates, both terrestrial and aquatic. In the San Francisco Bay Area network of national parks alone, there are over 250 species of birds. [4]
Most fish are food opportunists, or generalists. They eat whatever is most easily available. [86] For example, the blue shark feeds on dead whales and nearly everything else that wriggles: other fish, cephalopods, gastropods, ascidians, or crustaceans. [87] [88] Ocean sunfish prefer jellyfish. [64]