Amphibians I
The newts and salamanders are in the group Urodela, also called the Caudata, both names referring to their visible tail. They arose in the late Jurassic Period (about 63 million years ago). Much of the bone in their bodies has been replaced by cartilage. The newts and salamanders also go through a tadpole stage, but they resemble the adult forms much more closely than do the tadpoles of frogs and toads.
The last group of extant amphibians are the caecilians, in the group Apoda, meaning "without feet". Fossils from his group of amphibians have not been found before the Palaeocene Epoch (65 million years ago), so they may have only arisen fairly recently. The caecilians have no limbs, no tail, and degenerate eyes. They also do no pass through a tadpole stage.
In my next article, I will be discussing the fossil amphibians.
More information about amphibians:
The copyright of the article Amphibians I in Paleontology is owned by Beverly Eschberger. Permission to republish Amphibians I in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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