Imagine being able to live both in water and on land. Humans can’t do it, but amphibians can! Amphibians are animals that live both in water and on land.
There are more than 4,000 kinds of amphibians in the world! You probably know some. Frogs and salamanders are amphibians. Amphibians live all over the world.
Amphibians have backbones. They do not have hair or feathers. Their skin is moist and a bit slimy. If an amphibian’s skin dries out, it might not survive.
Most amphibians lay eggs. Females will lay lots of eggs in the water. When the eggs hatch, the amphibians will live in the water for a while. In the water, they breathe with gills, like fish. Then the amphibians grow lungs and lose their gills. With lungs, they can live on land. Amphibians can also breathe through their skin. Imagine that!
Amphibians, such as frogs, can be helpful to humans. If a frog’s habitat is not healthy, the frog gets sick and may disappear. When lots of frogs are sick, this is a sign that the environment may not be healthy for humans either. When this happens, humans can work to make the frogs’ habitat healthy again. This is good for frogs and humans!
