--- title: "Amphibians (Amphibia) | Evolutionary Clade | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "Permeable respiratory skin, transformative larval metamorphosis, and potent toxic alkaloids. Explore 17 species in the Amphibians evolutionary lineage." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/icon-512.png" --- # Amphibians (*Amphibia*) > Permeable respiratory skin, transformative larval metamorphosis, and potent toxic alkaloids. Amphibians are the original terrestrial pioneers. Most species live double lives: hatching as aquatic larvae with gills before metamorphosing into air-breathing land adults. Because their skin is permeable to water and gas, they absorb oxygen directly from the environment. ## Key Evolutionary Adaptations - Cutaneous respiration allows many amphibians to absorb oxygen and water directly through porous skin layers. - Golden poison frogs carry enough batrachotoxin in their skin glands to stop the hearts of ten adult humans. - Axolotls retain larval external gills throughout adulthood and can fully regenerate severed spinal cords and limbs. ## Member Species (17 Creatures) - [Axolotl](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/axolotl/) (*Ambystoma mexicanum*) - **Superpower**: Regrows whole limbs, its tail and spinal cord, and parts of its heart and brain; heals deep skin wounds without a scar; keeps its larval gills as a breeding adult - **Musical Match**: Anamanaguchi & Hatsune Miku (Hyperpop & Kawaii Future Bass) - [Cane Toad](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/cane-toad/) (*Rhinella marina*) - **Superpower**: Large parotoid glands on the shoulders secrete toxins when the toad is under threat, which may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting, shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs in predators, and even death in some of them, including dogs. - **Musical Match**: Midnight Oil (Aussie Garage Punk & Pub Rock) - [Common Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/common-frog/) (*Rana temporaria*) - **Superpower**: Cold survival: it winters under rocks or buried in pond mud and lives as far north as the Arctic Circle - **Musical Match**: Julianna Barwick (Glacial Ambient & Drone Soundscapes) - [Fire Salamander](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/fire-salamander/) (*Salamandra salamandra*) - **Superpower**: Glands behind the eyes and down the body that secrete toxic alkaloids, which it can actively spray at an attacker. - **Musical Match**: Lake Malice (Electronic Metalcore & Nu-Metal) - [Glass Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/glass-frog/) (*Centrolenidae*) - **Superpower**: Resting glass frogs in a 2022 study packed about 89% of their red blood cells into their livers, becoming two to three times more transparent. - **Musical Match**: Clams Casino (Glacial Ambient & Drone Soundscapes) - [Golden Poison Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/golden-poison-frog/) (*Phyllobates terribilis*) - **Superpower**: Secretes batrachotoxin and is the most toxic of all frog species; the poison of a single frog could kill up to ten people. - **Musical Match**: Infected Mushroom (Psy-Trance) - [Goliath Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/goliath-frog/) (*Conraua goliath*) - **Superpower**: Males build rock and gravel nests and wrestle rivals - **Musical Match**: Earthless (Heavy Psych & Desert Rock) - [Harlequin Poison Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/harlequin-poison-frog/) (*Oophaga histrionica*) - **Superpower**: Skin toxins collected from its prey, able to repel or even kill a small predator - **Musical Match**: Systema Solar (Latin Psychedelic Cumbia & Tropicalia) - [Hellbender](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/hellbender/) (*Cryptobranchus alleganiensis*) - **Superpower**: Cutaneous respiration through wrinkled skin folds, plus a mucus coat distasteful to potential predators - **Musical Match**: Clutch (Stoner Rock & Desert Groove) - [Japanese Giant Salamander](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/japanese-giant-salamander/) (*Andrias japonicus*) - **Superpower**: Breathes mainly through its wrinkled skin, and has sensory bumps around its head that work like a fish's lateral line. - **Musical Match**: Geinoh Yamashirogumi (Glacial Ambient & Drone Soundscapes) - [Olm](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/olm/) (*Proteus anguinus*) - **Superpower**: Predicted 100-year-plus lifespan, electroreceptive ampullary organs, and an 18-month experimental fast - **Musical Match**: Burial (Future Garage & Deep Electronica) - [Pacific Giant Salamander](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/pacific-giant-salamander/) (*Dicamptodon tenebrosus*) - **Superpower**: An audible warning bark and a noxious tail secretion, backed up by a head-butt and a vicious bite. - **Musical Match**: Nirvana (90s Grunge & Heavy Alt-Rock) - [Red-Eyed Tree Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-eyed-tree-frog/) (*Agalychnis callidryas*) - **Superpower**: Startle coloration: flashing bulging red eyes, huge orange feet, and blue-and-yellow flanks, which may give a bird or snake pause long enough for the frog to escape. - **Musical Match**: Paramore (Pop-Punk & 2000s Alt-Rock) - [Ringed Caecilian](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/ringed-caecilian/) (*Siphonops annulatus*) - **Superpower**: Mothers feed hatchlings with their own skin and a lipid-rich milk released from the vent - **Musical Match**: Portishead (Trip-Hop & Eerie Downtempo) - [Strawberry Poison-Dart Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/strawberry-poison-dart-frog/) (*Oophaga pumilio*) - **Superpower**: Poison collected from its diet, advertised in bright color - **Musical Match**: Sleigh Bells (Art Punk & Experimental Post-Punk) - [Surinam Toad](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/surinam-toad/) (*Pipa pipa*) - **Superpower**: Subcutaneous honeycomb egg incubation and whole-trunk suction feeding - **Musical Match**: Autechre (IDM & Glitch Ambient Synthesis) - [Wood Frog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/wood-frog/) (*Lithobates sylvaticus*) - **Superpower**: Extreme biological cryoprotection and whole-body freezing survival - **Musical Match**: Molchat Doma (Coldwave & Glacial Post-Punk) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://animaltracks.wiki/clades/amphibians/#collection", "name": "Amphibians (Amphibia)", "description": "Permeable respiratory skin, transformative larval metamorphosis, and potent toxic alkaloids.", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/clades/amphibians/", "mainEntity": { "@type": "ItemList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Axolotl", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/axolotl/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Cane Toad", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/cane-toad/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Common Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/common-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Fire Salamander", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/fire-salamander/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "name": "Glass Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/glass-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "name": "Golden Poison Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/golden-poison-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "name": "Goliath Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/goliath-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "name": "Harlequin Poison Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/harlequin-poison-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "name": "Hellbender", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/hellbender/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "name": "Japanese Giant Salamander", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/japanese-giant-salamander/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 11, "name": "Olm", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/olm/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 12, "name": "Pacific Giant Salamander", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/pacific-giant-salamander/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 13, "name": "Red-Eyed Tree Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-eyed-tree-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 14, "name": "Ringed Caecilian", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/ringed-caecilian/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 15, "name": "Strawberry Poison-Dart Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/strawberry-poison-dart-frog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 16, "name": "Surinam Toad", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/surinam-toad/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 17, "name": "Wood Frog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/wood-frog/" } ] } } ] } ```