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The largest living amphibian is the 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) Chinese giant salamander (Andrias davidianus) [41] but this is a great deal smaller than the largest amphibian that ever existed—the extinct 9 m (30 ft) Prionosuchus, a crocodile-like temnospondyl dating to 270 million years ago from the middle Permian of Brazil. [42]
Many of the causes of amphibian declines are well understood, and appear to affect other groups of organisms as well as amphibians. These causes include habitat modification and fragmentation, introduced predators or competitors, introduced species, pollution, pesticide use, or over-harvesting.
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 ).
Elsewhere, habitat loss is a significant cause of frog population decline, as are pollutants, climate change, increased UVB radiation, and the introduction of non-native predators and competitors. [204] A Canadian study conducted in 2006 suggested heavy traffic in their environment was a larger threat to frog populations than was habitat loss ...
These lakes were drained by Spanish settlers after the conquest of the Aztec Empire, leading to the destruction of much of the axolotl's natural habitat. As of 2020, the axolotl was near extinction [6] [7] due to urbanization in Mexico City and consequent water pollution, as well as the introduction of invasive species such as tilapia and perch
All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arboreal or freshwater aquatic ecosystems. Thus amphibians typically start out as larvae living in water, but some species have developed behavioural adaptations to bypass this.
It is a relatively small, toad-like amphibian found in damp, shady habitats. The species is highly fossorial , and feeds primarily on ants. These North American microhylids (Family: Microhylidae ) are distinguished from true toads (genus Bufo ), and other anurans by their moist, smooth skin, their lack of eardrums or tympana , their ...
Greater siren out of water. Greater sirens are carnivorous and prey upon invertebrates (such as insects, crustaceans, gastropods, bivalves, spiders, molluscs, and crayfish) [11] and aquatic vertebrates (such as small fish) [11] with a possible preference for molluscs (such as snails and freshwater clams), [8] [12] although they have been observed to eat vegetation such as algae.