Class: Amphibia

Subclass Labyrithodontia (extinct) Order Anthracosauria (extinct) Subclass Lepospondyli (extinct) Subclass Lissamphibia (living amphibians) Order Anura (frogs and toads) Order Urodela (salamanders, newts, sirens, etc.) Order Gymnophiona (aka Apoda, Caecilians)
From Conant and Collins

From Romer

From Linzey 2001

Class: Amphibia
Amphibians represent the first truly tetrapod vertebrates -first to move about and support themselves on land All amphibians have bony skeletons Most have 4 limbs, except Caecilians (limbless) and Sirens (forelimbs only) Many have webbed feet Typically the glandular skin is smooth, moist, and lacks scales -Caecilians have concealed dermal scales One advance associated with a more terrestrial existence is the refinement of the ear

-the amphibian ear, unlike that of fishes, consists of three components

-Inner ear, middle ear, outer ear -There is increased sensitivity to accommodate airborne sounds

Class: Amphibia
-Gas exchange occurs through lungs, gills, and/or the skin -Some salamanders have no lungs (secondarily lost) -Adults have double circulation

-Both a pulmonary and a systemic circuit

-Heart has three chambers -Two atria and one ventricle

-Some mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood occurs in ventricle

Class: Amphibia
The evolution of the tetrapod limb was the third major hallmark in vertebrate evolution In early forms, these limbs represented modified Sarcopterygian pectoral and pelvic fins Development of limbs required only a few minor modifications -elongation of proximal elements into long-bones of limbs -Proliferation of more distal elements into bones of feet -Elaboration of pectoral and pelvic girdles (for anchoring the limbs) -Early locomotion was probably very crude
Body

-Orientation of limb did not effectively allow body to be raised above substrate
-Limbs acted as pivot points rather than for propulsion. Modern salamanders still move about in this way.

Class: Amphibia
Emergence on to land required adaptations to accommodate desiccation -amphibians have an external layer of skin, the stratum corneum, that consists of a single layer of dead cornified cells

-Reduces water loss through skin to some extent

However, amphibian eggs are very vulnerable to desiccation Hence, amphibians are reproductively constrained to exist in moist environments. Fertilization is external in anuran and some urodelids -most salamanders have external fertilization, but no copulation -Males deposit a spermatophore which is picked up by the female and placed into a spermatheca (in wall of cloaca) -Eggs are fertilized as they pass through the cloaca

Class: Amphibia
Most amphibians are oviparous -females lay eggs Some amphibians undergo direct development in the egg -embryos pass through larval stage in the egg and emerge from the egg as miniature versions of the adults. In most amphibians, the young must pass through a larval stage -larvae are aquatic with external gills In a few forms, the adults will retain larval characteristics = neoteny A very few forms are viviparous -the females retain the eggs in their bodies until they are ready to hatch.

Amphibian Origins
It is clear that amphibians evolved from some lineage of Sarcopterygian fishes -However the details of this origin remain obscure

One fossil group, from the Crossopterygian lineage, that provides a good candidate for amphibian origins are the Rhipidistians
-shared many characteristics with fossil amphibians -Limb/fin structure, jaw structure, both had labyrinthodont teeth
From Linzey 2001

However, recent mitDNA evidence shows that modern amphibians are more similar to lungfishes (Dipnoi) than to Coelacanths (Crossopterygii) -this suggests a different origin for the amphibians -Critics reject this argument based on certain methodological arguments

Amphibian Origins
Though actual origins are uncertain, it is clear that there was plenty of selective pressure for amphibians to emerge onto land -the Devonian was a period of tremendous climatic fluctuation -Wet and dry spells dry spells would have set up intense competition in aquatic habitats, would favor an ability to move from one pond to another, oxygen poor waters would favor airbreathing -Also, at this time, there was a tremendous radiation of arthropods into the terrestrial environment -Centipedes, millipedes, spiders, insects, etc.

-This would create an open niche in a relatively low-competition terrestrial environment

-Lastly, the ability to temporarily move out of water would allow early amphibians a means of escaping from aquatic predators.

Amphibian Origins
The fossil record of amphibians includes two extinct subclasses Labyrinthodontia and Lepospondyli The earliest fossil amphibians belonged to the Labyrinthodontia

From Romer

Amphibian Origins
Labyrinthodonts first appeared in the upper Devonian -were the most abundant and diverse amphibians though the Carboniferous, Permian, and Triassic -Some were quite large, reaching a length of 5 feet. -Most were aquatic or primarily aquatic -Many retained fish-like tails, some retained internal gills -Several groups of Labyrinthodonts existed, two were important for vertebrate evolution -Anthracosaurs represented a small group but are important because they are believed to be ancestral to reptiles -Temnospodylians were common during Permian and are suggested to be ancestral to modern Amphibians

Amphibian Origins
The other fossil subclass was Lepospondyli -represent a group of small, salamander-like amphibians that appeared in the Carboniferous and Permian.

-Though superficially similar to salamanders, they are not believed to be closely related to any living amphibians
-Based on unique structure of the vertebrae

From Romer

Living Amphibians
Modern amphibians all belong to the Subclass Lissamphibia First appeared in Triassic about 200 mya First true frog Jurassic (190 mya)

First salamander Jurassic (145 mya)

First Caecilians Jurassic (195 mya) Because many forms have delicate skeletons, they dont preserve well. Thus the fossil record is rather poor As a result the evolutionary relationships among living taxa are poorly understood
Anura Urodela

Apoda
From Conant and Collins

From Linzey 2001

From Conant and Collins