Amphibian Practical Flashcards
Caecillidae
Order: Apoda
Long bodied
Anulli down entire body
Limbless
Eyes reduced
Anura
Frogs & toads
No tail as adult
Hind legs modified for jumping
Ribs absent
External fertilization
Bufonidae
Order: Anura (True toads)
Parotoid glads; poison
Warty, bumpy, rough skin
Pupils horizontal
American toad (Bufo americanus)
Fowler’s toad (Bufo woohhousi)
Hylidae
Order: Anura (Tree frogs)
Suction cups on toes
Slim waist
Spring peeper (Psueodacris crucifer)
Chorus frog (Pseudacris triseriata)
Gray treefrog (Hyla versicolor)
Northern cricket frog (Acris crepitans)
Ranidae
Order: Anura (True fogs)
Dorsolateral folds
Smooth skin
Typanum
Dark nupital pad on forelimb during mating season
Meadow/leopard frog (Lithobates pipiens)
Pickerel frog (Lithobates palustris)
Wood frog (Lithobates sylvatica)
Mink frog (Lithobates septentrionalis)
Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeiana)
Green frog (Lithobates clamitans)
Microhylidae
Order: Anura (Narrow-mouthed frogs)
Small pointed heads
Fold of skin behind head
Typanum absent
Rough skin
Eastern narrow-mouthed toad (Gastrophryne carolinensis)
Pipidae
Order: Anura (Aquatic frogs)
Claw/star-like hands
Fingers long, slender
Lateral line present in adults
Dorsoventrally flattened
Female carries eggs in skin of back
African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis)
Ascaphidae
Order: Anura (Tailed frogs)
Intromittant organ, male outgrowth of cloaca
Only 2 species
Discoglossidae
Order: Anura (Fire-bellied/Midwife toads)
Fire-bellied (Bombina)
Firey-organge spots on stomach
Skin poisonous, warty
No webbed feet, parotid glands
Pupil vertical, triangular
Midwife (Alytes)
Males carry eggs
Sirenidae
Order: Caudata
External gills
No hind limbs, pelvic girdle
Paedomorphic, retain larval chars
Lesser siren (Siren intermedia)
Amphiumidae
Order: Caudata (Amphiumas)
Eel-like bodies
Front and hind appendages small, 2-3 toes
1 pair of gill slits, no gills
Lungs as adults
Lateral line
Plethodontidae
Order: Caudata (Lungless salamanders)
Costal grooves
Naso-labial groove
Four-toed salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum)
Red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus)
Proteidae
Order: Caudata (Mudpuppies)
Front/hind limbs
External gills
4 toes/foot
Paedomorphic; retain larval chars
Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus)
Cryptobranchidae
Order: Caudata (Hell benders)
Largest of all salamanders
Dorsoventrically compressed
Lateral folding, wrinkling; respiratory
Male build nest, Female lay eggs
Ambystomidae
Order: Caudata (Mole/Tiger salamanders)
Costal grooves
Broad head, chunky body
Blue-spotted salamander (Ambystoma laterale)
Spotted (Ambystoma maculatum)
Marbled (Ambystoma opacum)
Small-mouthed (Ambystoma texanum)
Tiger (Ambstoma tigrinum)
Salamandridae
Order: Caudata (Newts)
Lungs, adults terrestrial/semi-aquatic
Paedomorphic; retain laterally compressed tails/fin
Skin secrete poison
Red-spotted newt (Notopthalamus viridenscens)
