Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniotic, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all tetrapods, excluding the amniotes. All extant (living) amphibians belong to the monophyletic subclass Lissamphibia, with three living orders: Anura (frogs), Urodela (salamanders), and Gymnophiona (caecilians). Evolved to be mostly semiaquatic, amphibians have adapted to inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living in freshwater, wetland or terrestrial ecosystems. Their life cycle typically starts out as aquatic larvae with gills known as tadpoles, but some species have developed behavioural adaptations to bypass this.
Oligoryzomys nigripes, also known as the black-footed colilargo or the black-footed pygmy rice rat, is a rodent in the genus Oligoryzomys of family Cricetidae. Oligoryzomys nigripes is a species that has been further divided into different sister taxa throughout history. It is found in different countries in South America. It is a large species with long ears, dark yellow to dark brown upperparts, sharply delimited from the whitish underparts, and often a pink girdle on the chest. This species of rat spends much of its life among the trees. The karyotype is 2n = 62, FNa = 78–82.
Indotyphlus maharashtraensis is a species of caecilians described in 2004 by scientists of Bombay Natural History Society and the Natural History Museum, London. It is only the second species of Indotyphlus known to science, and only known from its type locality near Humbarli village, Satara District, in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, India. Common names Humbarli caecilian, Maharashtra caecilian, and Konkan tail-less caecilian have been coined for it.
Rhinella diptycha, sometimes referred to as Cope's toad, Schneider's toad, cururu toad, or rococo toad, is a toad found in northern Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, eastern Bolivia, and eastern and southern Brazil.
Rhinella icterica is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae that is found in northeastern Argentina, southern Brazil, and eastern Paraguay. "Cururu" is its indigenous name and refers to the male advertisement call that is a melodious tremolo. "Cururu toad", without the specifier "yellow", is a common name used for a few other closely related species.
Atretochoana eiselti is a species of caecilian originally known only from two preserved specimens discovered by Sir Graham Hales in the Brazilian rainforest, while on an expedition with Sir Brian Doll in the late 1800s, but rediscovered in 2011 by engineers working on a hydroelectric dam project in Brazil. Until 1998, it was known only from the type specimen in the Naturhistorisches Museum, Vienna. Originally placed in the genus Typhlonectes in 1968, it was reclassified into its own monotypic genus, Atretochoana, in 1996. It was also found to be more closely related to the genus Potamotyphlus than Typholonectes. The species is the largest of the few known lungless tetrapods, and the only known lungless caecilian.
Caecilia mertensi is a species of caecilian in the family Caeciliidae from South America. The type locality is imprecise: the holotype was purportedly collected in "Seychelle Isle", but most likely originates from South America. However, more recently, several specimens have been collected from Mato Grosso, Brazil. The specific name mertensi honors Robert Mertens, a German zoologist and herpetologist. Common name Mertens' caecilian has been coined for this species.
Chthonerpeton exile is a species of caecilian in the family Typhlonectidae. It is endemic to Brazil, and only known from its imprecise type locality "Bahia". Only one specimen is known and now lost. The specific name exile, form Latin exilis, refers to the "relatively slender, delicate shape of the body and head." The common name Bahia caecilian has been coined for this species.
Chthonerpeton onorei is a species of amphibian in the family Typhlonectidae, endemic to Ecuador. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, rivers, swamps, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, pastureland, irrigated land, seasonally flooded agricultural land, and canals and ditches.
Chthonerpeton perissodus is a species of caecilian in the family Typhlonectidae. It is endemic to Minas Gerais, Brazil, and only known from its imprecise type locality, Rio Pandeiro. Only three specimens are known. The common name Minas Gerais caecilian has been coined for this species.
Mimosiphonops reinhardti is a species of caecilian in the family Siphonopidae. It is endemic to Brazil. It is only known from the holotype collected from "Brasilia" in 1878, probably somewhere in eastern Brazil. The specific name reinhardti honors Johannes Theodor Reinhardt, Danish zoologist and herpetologist who collected the holotype. Common name Reinhardt's caecilian has been proposed for this species.
Siphonops annulatus, the ringed caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Siphonopidae from South America. It might have the broadest known distribution among terrestrial caecilian species.
Siphonops paulensis, or Boettger's caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Siphonopidae. It is found in northern Argentina, Paraguay, eastern Bolivia, and southern Brazil. It lives subterraneously in forests, savannas, shrublands, and grassland. It also adapts to anthropogenic disturbance and can even live in urban gardens. In fact these caecilians have even been recorded to breed and raise their young close to Santa Cruz, a highly populated city. It is a locally common species that is not facing major threats.
Sylvacaecilia is a monotypic genus of caecilian in the family Grandisoniidae. The only species is Sylvacaecilia grandisonae, also known as the Aleku caecilian or Ethiopian caecilian. It is endemic to southwestern Ethiopia and known from the Gambela, Oromia, and Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Regions.
Typhlonectes compressicauda, the Cayenne caecilian, is a species of amphibian in the family Typhlonectidae that lives in water. It is found in Amazonian Brazil, Peru, and Colombia as well as in Guyana and French Guiana, and likely Suriname, and according to some sources, Venezuela. It is an aquatic caecilian that inhabits permanent rivers and marshes mainly in the lowland forest zone.
The Koh Tao Island caecilian is a species of amphibian in the family Ichthyophiidae found in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Also known as the Ichthyophis bannanicus, the Banna caecilian, it is also found in southern China.
Leptodactylus podicipinus, sometimes known as the pointedbelly frog, is a species of frog in the family Leptodactylidae. It is found in northern Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia, and Brazil.
Rhinatrema is a genus of caecilians in the family Rhinatrematidae. Their common name is two-lined caecilians. The genus is known from the Guyanas and adjacent Brazil. Most Rhinatrema are known to inhabit and live in areas of tropical forests where there is an abundance of dense, dead vegetation matter.
The spot-flanked gallinule is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It is monotypic in the genus Porphyriops. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Its natural habitats are swamps and freshwater lakes, but it is able to survive in properly managed artificial ponds. Its population has declined significantly in recent decades.
The Argentine swamp rat is a semiaquatic rodent species from South America. It is found in northeastern Argentina and Paraguay, where it lives in freshwater marshes and along the southern coast of the Río de la Plata estuary, as well as in woodland. It is characterized by having stiff hairs on its otherwise naked tail, which are believed to help the animal swim. S. aquaticus is similar in build to members of the genus Rattus. "[It] has a relatively larger head, a stouter body, larger feet, and a relatively longer tail." The pelage along its back is "long and glossy" varying from brown to dark brown. It can have a grayish wash in some individuals. "The sides have a yellowish cast." The pelage in the abdominal region is typically an off white color. The forefeet are large for use in swimming and digging. All digits, including the pollex are equipped with a claw. Its karyotype has 2n = 32.
