Amphibians are a major clade of tetrapod vertebrates (class Amphibia) encompassing anurans (frogs and toads), caudates (salamanders and newts), and gymnophionans (caecilians). They are characterized by permeable, glandular skin that plays key roles in osmoregulation, gas exchange, and secretion of bioactive peptides, making them sensitive bioindicators of environmental change. Most species exhibit biphasic life histories with aquatic, gilled larvae and terrestrial, lung-breathing adults, though direct development and paedomorphosis also occur. Amphibians occupy pivotal positions in trophic networks and evolutionary biology, representing the earliest diverging extant lineage of tetrapods and providing critical models for studies of metamorphosis, regeneration, endocrine disruption, and emerging infectious diseases such as chytridiomycosis.
The most effective conservation strategies for protecting vertebrates on a global scale are those aimed at mitigating the effects of overexploitation, habitat loss and climate change, which are the most widespread threats ...
Ecology
Feb 12, 2026
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A study from the University of California, Davis, found that temperature affects the sound and quality of male frogs' mating calls. In the colder, early weeks of spring, their songs start off sluggishly. In warmer weather, ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 12, 2026
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19
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Liège on a large population of Japanese giant salamanders—one of the largest amphibians in the world—reveals that above a certain size, a spectacular transition occurs ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 5, 2026
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248
Early in development, many animals pick a team—male or female—based on their genetics, and, with time, acquire the characteristics to match. New research from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) explores how one species ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 29, 2026
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28
A new species of amphibian that lived 150 million years ago has been discovered in Portugal. The tiny animal was one of the earliest species belonging to a mysterious group of amphibians that lived from the time of the dinosaurs ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jan 28, 2026
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341
The chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis), or Bd for short, is considered one of the causes of the worldwide decline in amphibian populations. In recent years, researchers have identified different genetic strains ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 19, 2026
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938
On a frigid April day, Brock University Professor of Biological Sciences Glenn Tattersall, then-Ph.D. student Danilo Giacometti and wildlife researcher Patrick Moldowan ventured out into Ontario's Algonquin Provincial Park ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 19, 2026
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858
Almost two-thirds of Australia is privately owned. But most of our scientific understanding of how threatened species are faring comes from research done on public lands. Traditional biodiversity surveys by professional scientists ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 19, 2026
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37
A new study led by UCC paleontologists discovered that frogs have conserved their ecology in the last 45 million years. The research is published in the journal iScience.
Evolution
Dec 17, 2025
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60
In the aftermath of historically severe wildfires in 2020, a study of Cascade Range watersheds found that stream vertebrates are doing surprisingly well, highlighted by flourishing fish populations.
Plants & Animals
Dec 16, 2025
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