Frogs and Toads
Frogs and Toads
The members of this group, the largest of the li ing orders of amphibians, ha e loosel! fitting s"ins, no tails #hen adult, bon! pe$toral girdles, and usuall! no ribs% &ertilisation is al#a!s e'ternal, and no spe$ies remains lar al for life% The anatom! is spe$ialised for (umping) the ertabral $olumn is short, #ith e'tensi el! fused ertebrae, the main bones of the limbs are fused, and the hind limbs are mu$h longer than the forelimbs% &rogs and toads breathe b! mo ing the floor of the mouth, first dra#ing air into the mouth and then for$ing it into the lungs after $losing the nostrils% There are t#el e families%
&amil! As$aphidae
Ascaphids: 4 species Members of this family have ribs and rudimentary tailwagging muscles. There are two genera, one in New ealand and one in North America.
&amil! Pipidae
!ipid toads: "#species These toads are entirely a$uatic. %nly the larvae have ribs. &oth 'aws are usually toothless. and all species are tongueless . (yelids are sometimes present.
&amil! *is$oglossidae
)iscoglossids: "* species )iscoglossids, found in (urope and Asia, have toothless lower 'aws, and their ribs are present throughout life.
&amil! +hinophr!dinae
There is one species Me+ican burrowing toad, Rhinophrynus dorsalis: found among scrub and savanna on the coastal plains of Me+ico and ,uatemala.
&amil! Pelobatidae
!elobatids: #4 species These small toads with minute teeth are found in (urasia, North Africa and North America
&amil! Bufonidae
Toads: -** species The toads in this family have no upper teeth. There are several genera, the best .nown being Bufo, which contains /#* species and is found on all continents e+cept Australia. These toads live on land and are active at dus. and before dawn. They are specialised for crawling and trap insects on their stic.y tongues.
&amil! Atelopodidae
Atelopodids: /0 species There are only two genera in this family of small, brightly coloured frogs, which live near forest streams in 1entral and 2outh America. Many species wal. rather than hop. 3n one species, Atelopus stelzneri the tadpoles hatch within /4 hours of the eggs being laid.
&amil! ,!lidae
Tree frogs: almost 0** species Treefrogs are adapted for life in trees, and have e+tra cartilage between the two end digits of the hands and feet, which gives them a better grip. The family, which also contains groundliving and a$uatic forms, includes the large genus Hyla, containing -#* species, which is found throughout the world, e+cept in Africa south of the 2ahara and in eastern !olynesia.
&amil! -eptoda$t!lidae
4eptodactylids: 0#* species Members of this family are found in 2outh and 1entral America, Australia and southern Africa. 2everal genera are adapted to the more arid areas of Australia. )uringthe dry season they retire deep into the ground. 2ome species lay their eggs in burrows and rely on rainfall for development5 the tadpoles6 metamorphosis is so rapid that they become adults before the water evaporates.
&amil! +anidae
7rogs: hundreds of species This group, which occurs on all continents, is unspecialised e+cept for 'umping - the specialisation common to all anurans. 3t includes the virtually world wide genus Rana, containing /**--** species, all of which have a notch on the end of the tongue. 2ome, such as the marsh frog Rana ridibunda and the edible frog Rana
esculenta, are a$uatic and have vocal sacs at the corner of the mouth5 others have no vocal sacs.
&amil! +ha$ophoridae
%ar-legged frogs: hundreds of species These frogs, found in the tropics of Africa, Madagascar and eastern Asia , resemble tree frogs in their adaptations to living in trees. They have webbed hind feet.
&amil! .i$roh!lidae
Microhylids: hundreds of species This little-.nown family of burrowing and tree living forms is found in the %ld and New 8orld tropics, e+cept western africa. The tadpoles hatch either at an advanced stage or completely