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They live double lives

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Updated Oct 7, 2005

The name "amphibian" comes from a Greek word that means "living a double life." Most amphibians spend the early part of their lives in the water and the later part on land.

There are three groups, or orders, of amphibians. They are the frogs and toads, the salamanders and the caecilians. Newts, efts and mud puppies are salamanders. Caecilians are burrowing animals that have no legs and are blind.

Most of the amphibians are neither strong nor quick, though frogs can move fairly fast. The large majority are protected mainly by their retiring habits and their coloring. In addition, practically all amphibians are able to secrete poison in their skin glands, which is their best defense against enemies.

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In adult life, most amphibians usually have lungs, but they also breathe through their skin. Amphibians are usually found only in hot and temperate climates. They generally cannot live in salt water.

Although typical adult amphibians live on land, they return to the water for the mating season. There the eggs are laid and fertilized, and there the young pass the first part of their lives as fishlike larvae, feeding mostly on vegetable material.

There are more than 1,040 species of amphibians. All are less than 3 feet long except the giant salamander of Japan, which may grow to 5 feet.

THE AMPHIBIANS

Because amphibians must keep their skin moist in order to breathe, they are found in a wet and humid environment. Most of the more that 2,000 species live in the tropics where they can take advantage of the hot, wet climate.

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