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.
A new study published in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society describes, for the first time in detail, the soft tissues preserved in Montsecosuchus depereti, a Lower Cretaceous crocodylomorph from the Pedrera de Meià ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jun 17, 2026
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A new study published in the journal Nature Conservation reveals that threatened amphibian species are being inadvertently or illegally sold under incorrect names in digital marketplaces. Using DNA barcoding, researchers ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 16, 2026
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For a frog no bigger than a fingernail, survival depends on how it spends every bit of energy. New research from the University of Florida shows that young frogs prioritize growing quickly even when infected with a deadly ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 16, 2026
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UBC researchers have found that more than five million amphibians and reptiles were displaced by development in British Columbia in just four years—and that there is no requirement to monitor survival rates. The paper published ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 9, 2026
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The question of why females mate with multiple males has long puzzled evolutionary biologists. A new study of African foam-nest tree frogs, led by University of Wollongong (UOW) researchers, reveals polyandry could be the ...
Evolution
Jun 3, 2026
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Bright colors in animals are beautiful but often considered risky because they are more obvious to predators. However, conspicuous colors can also serve defensively, signaling toxicity or even luring predators away from more ...
Plants & Animals
May 29, 2026
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A Brazilian study published in the journal Ecography indicates that the biodiversity of anuran amphibians (toads and frogs) on islands is determined by factors encompassed in two previously opposing theories.
Plants & Animals
May 27, 2026
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An international research team has discovered that the fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) is biofluorescent. A study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science shows that the salamander reflects turquoise light ...
Plants & Animals
May 27, 2026
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17
If the eastern red-backed salamander has an equivalent of Usain Bolt, Sophia Zaslow is determined to find it. Since her undergraduate years, the Binghamton University doctoral student in biological sciences has conducted ...
Plants & Animals
May 26, 2026
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The Mexican axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) is famous because adults look like overgrown babies, or tadpoles, retaining juvenile features as adults and capable of remarkable regeneration of lost limbs or tails. New studies ...
