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The skin of amphibians is a major site of respiration in all species for which measurements are available. [2] Cutaneous respiration is the sole respiratory mode of lungless salamanders (family Plethodontidae) which lack lungs entirely yet constitute the largest family of salamanders. Cutaneous respiration in frogs and other amphibians may be ...
On land, amphibians are restricted to moist habitats because of the need to keep their skin damp. [ 31 ] Modern amphibians have a simplified anatomy compared to their ancestors due to paedomorphosis , caused by two evolutionary trends: miniaturization and an unusually large genome, which result in a slower growth and development rate compared ...
The skin of these animals is highly vascularized and moist, with moisture maintained via secretion of mucus from specialized cells. While the lungs are of primary importance to breathing control, the unique properties of cutaneous respiration supplements rapid gas exchange when amphibians are submerged in oxygen-rich water. [7]
Frogs are extremely efficient at converting what they eat into body mass. They are an important food source for predators and part of the food web dynamics of many of the world's ecosystems. The skin is semi-permeable, making them susceptible to dehydration, so they either live in moist places or have special adaptations to deal with dry habitats.
Gills or gill-like organs, located in different parts of the body, are found in various groups of aquatic animals, including mollusks, crustaceans, insects, fish, and amphibians. Semiterrestrial marine animals such as crabs and mudskippers have gill chambers in which they store water, enabling them to use the dissolved oxygen when they are on land.
These are reduced in adulthood, their function taken over by the gills proper in fishes and by lungs in most amphibians. Some amphibians retain the external larval gills in adulthood, the complex internal gill system as seen in fish apparently being irrevocably lost very early in the evolution of tetrapods. [12]
What we do know is, the moths benefit when the sloths leave their trees to poop. The more moths that make the sloth fur their home, the more the algae can grow, and the greener the sloth fur becomes.
Life in Cold Blood is a BBC nature documentary series written and presented by David Attenborough, first broadcast in the United Kingdom from 4 February 2008 on BBC One. [1]A study of the evolution and habits of amphibians and reptiles, it is the sixth and last of Attenborough's specialised surveys following his major trilogy that began with Life on Earth, hence a ninth part for the eight ...