Amphibia --
Caecilians
Herpetoculture
Pensacola Jr College
Class Amphibia
w Backboned animals
w Bare, soft or warty skin; no
scales
w Usually external limbs with
4 digits on front feet and 5 digits on rear feet
w Gills present as larvae but
often lost in metamorphosis
Class Amphibia
(contd)
w Lungs generally present in
adult forms
w Eggs usually deposited in
water, no amnion
w Found in a variety of
habitats except saltwater seas
w Incapable of regulating
internal body temperature
Caecilians --
Classification
w Phylum Chordata
w Subphylum Vertebrata
w Superclass Tetrapoda
w Class Amphibia
w Order Apoda
Taxonomy (contd)
w Not a very diverse group,
approx. 160 species in 5 families
w Families are seperated by:
Groove structure and #
Tail presence
Skull structure
Mode of reproduction
Order Apoda
w Range: tropical America / Africa / Asia, in areas
of abundant rainfall
w Physical characteristics:
Blunt bullet shaped head
Cylindrical limbless body
Body blunted behind vent or
very short tail
Order Apoda
w Physical characteristics:
Segmented by grooves
Protrusible sensory
tentacles on head
Reduced eyes
No ear openings
No limbs
Adult size 2 inches 5 feet
Order Apoda
w Anatomy:
No pelvic or pectoral
girdles
Tail vertebrae only in most
primitive species
Thick bony skull
Smooth skin with mucus and
granular glands
Fishlike scales in primitive
species
Order Apoda
w Anatomy (contd):
2 rows of inward pointing
teeth at margins of jaws
Fat bodies present
Right lung only, elongated
w Feeding: earthworms,
termites, insects, small verts
w Lifestyle: solitary &
nocturnal
Order Apoda
w Lifestyle (contd)
Usually terrestrial
burrowers near freshwater (except common captive group are aquatic burrowers)
Use thick head for digging
and muscle wave for movement
Ambush (sit and wait)
predators
Order Apoda
w Reproduction:
Internal fertilization, males
have phallodeum
1. Eggs deposited and
females protect them, larval stage
2. Eggs deposited and have
direct development
3. Viviparous, fetuses feed
on oviduct wall with special teeth
Geotrypetes
serophini
Herpele
squalostomata
Typhlonectes
compressicauda
Hypogeophis
rostratus
Scoloecomorphus
kirkii
Ichthyophis
glutinosus
Caecilian captive
husbandry
w Typhlonectes natans (rubber eel) is common
captive species
w Sealed freshwater tank of
appropriate size w/ air space at top, soft substrate, 80oF
w Invertebrate prey daily
w
Mixed
species with fish?
T. natans
breathing
T. natans feeding
T. natans husbandry (contd)
w Shedding up to 2x / month
w Use good hand-washing
practices toxins!
w Sexing by cloacal opening
shape
w Viviparous, 11-12 month
gestation, 2-6 babies need higher water temp for 6 mos.
Male cloacal
opening
T. natans mating
T. natans pregnant
T. natans giving
birth
T. natans newborn
Caecilian Diseases
w Blisters: fix water parameters
w Fungus: raise water temp and
treat with fish antifungals
w Nematodes: NORMAL
internally! Burrow out when animal is
sick.
w Float / bloat: change food
type, a gas problem
Blisters
