Newts and salamanders can sense vibrations but not sounds. Some are poisonous with teeth. They transport eggs internally and lay them externally in water, where the eggs hatch in 3-5 weeks. They respond to stimuli with their sensitive inner ears. They can adapt to weather by burrowing underground. They breathe through gills as larvae and lungs as adults. They maintain regulation through kidneys and are ecological indicators of ecosystem balance.

1. Amphibia’s
November 2, 2009 Volume VII
By Flickr user: Anauxite By Flickr user: Jeff By Flickr user: By Flickr user:
Kubina MiguelVieira brian.gratwicke
Interesting facts:
Salamanders can’t hear sounds, but they can sense vibrations. Some Salamanders are
also very poisonous and have teeth.
Transport their eggs are fertilized internally and they lay the
eggs externally on any underwater plants. The eggs
Newts and will hatch in 3 to 5 weeks.
Salamanders
transport in two Responses to Stimuli
ways, externally and
internally. They Newts and Salamanders respond to stimuli because
transport externally their inner ear is sensitive to both airborne sounds
By Flickr user: Sugar Pond
by walking on four and substrate borne vibrations making them turn
legs and they are also able to swim. Internally they their head to what they sense.
transport through metamorphosis, amphibians
transport nutrients form aquatic environments into Adaptation
terrestrial systems.
Newts and Salamanders are able to adapt to the
weather is hot, dry, and humid out they will dig
Nutrition
themselves into a deep burrow underground to keep
When on land salamanders and newts will hunt themselves moist.
around for food including, insects, worms, and slugs.
When they are in water they will hunt for tadpoles, Respiration
water, lice, insect larvae, water snails and shrimp so
When amphibians are born they get air by breathing
they are carnivores.
through gills but as they mature they breathe with
either gills, lungs, or through their skin. When they
Reproduction
are on land, breathing is done by taking air into the
Newts and salamanders reproduce by laying eggs lungs through the mouth or nose. Underwater they
during the spring, which is their breeding season, get oxygen into their body by diffusion across the
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2. Amphibia’s Continued
skin. Their skin is very thin and permeable and the Extinct or Endangered
oxygen is diffused into straight into the blood because
there is a lower oxygen concentration there. Extinct amphibians are Ainsworth’s Salamander and
Yunnan Lake Newt. Endangered amphibians are
Barton Springs Salamander, California Tiger
Regulation Salamander, and Desert Slender Salamander.
Newts and Salamanders maintain regulation by their What is there importance to our lives
kidneys excreting excess waste and water.
Newt and Salamanders
General Structure importance to our lives is
that they are ecological
The general structure of Newts or Salamanders are
By Flickr user: cotinis
indicators, meaning that
that they typically have four limbs, are are born with
by looking at them we can
gills, adapt lungs as they mature so they can breathe
tell if the ecosystem is off balance.
in water and on land, and lays eggs in water
Background on Group
Amphibians evolved in the Devonian Period and were
top predators in the Carboniferous and Permian
Periods, but many were wiped out during the
Permian. Amphibian is derived from the Ancient
Greek term “amphibios” which means both kind of
life, amphi, meaning “both” and bio meaning life.
Other Organisms Found in Group
Other organisms found in the Amphibian group are
many different types of frogs and toads.
What “oddball” exists
An oddball amphibian that
exists would be the fire
Photo of Fire Salamander by salamander because it is the
Flickr user: iain.forrest
fire salamander because it is
the only salamander that does not hatch form an egg.
Type of Symmetry
Newts and Salamanders have Bilateral symmetry
because if you were to cut it in half it would look the
same on both sides.
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