//------------------------------// // Amphibians // Story: Fluttershy's Animal Classes // by Majestical4729 //------------------------------// At the sanctuary, Fluttershy and Discord turned their attention to the group of amphibians. "Alright Discord, this group consists of only amphibians. Do you see anything they have in common?" Fluttershy asked. "Nothing other then slimy bodies I observe..." Discord commented, after taking a close look at the amphibians using a magnifying glass that he had conjured up with his magic. Fluttershy giggled, "Actually, amphibians have skin. Some amphibians have soft, smooth skin that they keep wet. The skin is actually slippery from being wet, not slimy." "Slippery not slimy?" Discord asked, "My, you are an animal expert." "There's more to an amphibian's skin than what I just mentioned," Fluttershy informed, "Amphibians indeed have lungs to breathe air in and out, but they breathe through their skin, too! Air moves in and out of their skin, so does water. Therefore, amphibians do not swallow water, they drink water by letting water move into their bodies by flowing through their skins." "So they don't need to swallow water in order to drink," Discord summarised, "Having a skin that allows both air and water into their body and out, such lucky little animals. Never have to worry about choking while drinking." "Back to the part about amphibian skins. Amphibians shed their skins several times a year. The shed skin is soft and they eat it. As in, they eat their own skin after shedding it off." "Eat their own skin?! I will never do that!" Discord claimed, "Even if I could, that is!" "Last but not least, an important fact to know about amphibians' skins: Some amphibians are protected by their skin, like some salamanders and toads have bad tasting liquids in their skin. If an animal tries to eat them it gets a mouthful of the bad tasting liquid and lets go. Sometimes the bad tasting liquid can make the animal sick. So many animals will not even try to eat a toad or salamander." Flutersy explained. "Lesson learnt; never try to eat a toad nor a salamander." Discord noted down in his notebook. "Actually, there's more to amphibians than just the skin that we just finished talking about." Fluttershy informed, "Another characteristic of an amphibian is how they reproduce. Unlike mammals, birds and reptiles that we talked about before, amphibians reproduce through external fertilisation. So amphibian eggs are fertilised by the sperm cell from the male, outside of the female's body. Much like most fishes that we will talk about soon." "External reproduction? Now you're talking something interesting." Discord commented, "Never heard much about it, even for a draconneques over a millennium years old." "And one more thing about amphibian eggs," Fluttershy stated, "Most amphibians reproduce in fresh water while a few lay their eggs on land and have developed mechanisms to keep the eggs moist. Amphibians reproduce by laying eggs that do not have a soft skin, not a hard shell. Most females lay eggs in the water and the babies, called larvae or tadpoles, live in the water, using gills to breathe and finding food as fish do." "Wait. Amphibians have gills?!" Discord asked in a very shocked tone. "The babies called tadpoles have gills, that hops them breathe under water. But as they grow up, they slowly lose their ability to breathe underwater as they lose their gills, although some species of amphibians retain their gills as adults." Fluttershy explained. "This is very complicated!" Discord cried. "Don't worry, this is still in lesson number one, so we're not going to the more complex parts yet." Fluttershy assured, before going back to the lecture,"Now that's enough about the eggs and young, let's move onto another key characteristic about amphibians like the fact that they are cold blooded. So they rely on the external environment to regulate their body temperature. Amphibians tend to bask in the sun to raise their body temperature and retreat to a cold place to lower their temperature. " "So they basically change their body temperature whenever their surrounding temperature change?" Discord asked. "Well, since they are cold blooded, it is that way." Fluttershy replied, "Their body temperatures change to be the same as their surroundings." "so that means if their surrounding is hot, their bodies become hot. If the surroundings is cold, their bodies become cold." Discord figured. "Yes, that's the basic way to say it." Fluttershy resounded, "Now, another characteristic you should know about amphibians is that amphibians are mainly carnivores and feed on almost anything that moves and they can swallow. The adult amphibian is a predator with its diet consisting of a wide variety of food. Some of these foods include spiders, earthworms, beetles, and caterpillars. Large amphibians can also feed on small vertebrates such as birds and mammals." "Amphibians eating birds and mammals?! I thought that birds and mammals are bigger than amphibians!" Discord could not help but shout out loud. "Some birds and mammals can be very small, small enough to become an amphibian's prey." Fluttershy explained, before continuing, "Food is often selected by sight, even in areas with dim light. " "So you're saying that amphibians eat what they see?" Discord asked. "I said 'often selected by sight', not always." Fluttershy clarified, "So there are chances that amphibians use other senses to find food, but we'll talk about them in another lesson, not in lesson number one." "Always another lesson," Discord grumbled. "Here's something that isn't on other lesson. One final fact about amphibians." Fluttershy began,"Amphibians spend their life both on land and in water. The term “amphibian” is a Greek word for “amphibious” which means “living a double life.” Most have a biphasic life cycle which involves the fertilization and development of eggs and larvae in water. The larvae metamorphose into a semi-terrestrial or terrestrial juvenile and adults. On the evolutionary tree, amphibians are found midway between fish which fully live in water and reptiles and mammals which lead a fully terrestrial lifestyle. Adult amphibians have to live near water since they need steady moisture supply in order to survive. " "That's...a lot in one go..." Discord commented, writing down everything Fluttershy recently said down in his notebook, "But...I think I got most of it down?" "If you think so, here's a chance to know if that's so or not." Fluttershy replied, before starting to give Discord a test. "Question One, what does an amphibian's skin do?" "Amphibian skins allow water to pass through and into the amphibian, so amphibians drink water through their skins, and does not swallow water. The skin also helps amphibians to breathe, as air moves in and out of the skin. Amphibian skins are wet not slimy, although they seem slimy. Also, amphibians shed and eat their own skin. aLast but not least, some amphibians have bad tasting liquids in their skin. If an animal tries to eat them it gets a mouthful of the bad tasting liquid and lets go. Sometimes the bad tasting liquid can make the animal sick. So many animals will not even try to eat such amphibians like toads and salamanders." "Question Two: How does an amphibian reproduce?" "Some amphibians lay eggs in the water while others lay eggs on land. Amphibian eggs are more of the soft kind of eggs, not being hard-shelled unlike bird eggs. mphibian eggs are fertilised by the sperm cells from the male, outside of the female's body. So it's external fertilisation." "Question Three: What do amphibians eat?" "Amphibians are mainly carnivorous. So they eat other animals. Amphibians feed on almost anything that moves and they can swallow. Large amphibians can also feed on small vertebrates such as birds and mammals. Food is often selected by sight, even in areas with dim light. " "Question Four, amphibians' body temperatures?" "Amphibians are cold blooded, so their body temperature change to be the same as the surrounding temperature." "Question Five, where do amphibians live?" "Amphibians spend their life both on land and in water. The term “amphibian” is a Greek word for “amphibious” which means “living a double life.” Most have a biphasic life cycle which involves the fertilization and development of eggs and larvae in water. The larvae metamorphose into a semi-terrestrial or terrestrial juvenile and adults. On the evolutionary tree, amphibians are found midway between fish which fully live in water and reptiles and mammals which lead a fully terrestrial lifestyle. Adult amphibians have to live near water since they need steady moisture supply in order to survive. " "Well done Discord," Fluttershy congratulated, "You once again answered in the way I would like you to, at your best!" "Of course, anything for you, Fluttershy." Discord responded. "Now that we got amphibians covered, let's move onto fish, shall we?" Fluttershy politely asked. "As you wish!" Discord responded.