2. Amphibians

3. Amphibian diversity
Anura (frogs, ~4000 sp.); Caudata (salamanders, ~450 sp.); Gymnophiona (caecilians, ~175 sp.)

4. Amphibian characteristics
Skin
permeable
respiration
mucous glands
poison glands
biphasic lifestyle
second hearing system
unique retinal cells
skull
paired occipital condyles
reduction/loss of bones
short ribs
declining populations
ectotherms
found near water

5. Caecilian characteristics
No limbs, reduced or absent girdles
Annuli
Solidified skull with
Eyes reduced/absent
Fusion of bones
Roofed, few/no fossa
Tentacle
Phallodeum
Siphonops annulatus

6. Salamander characteristics
Tailed, most with four limbs, four digits on front limbs, five digits on hindlimbs
Aquatic, terrestrial/fossorial, arboreal
Breathe through lungs, gills, and/or skin
Sprawling gait
Large genome
15-90 pg (humans: 3pg)
Diverse life cycles,
reproductive modes
--mostly internal fertilization

7. Frog characteristics Squat, tailless body Fused limb bones
Hindlimbs > forelimbs
Few vertebrae
Terrestrial, arboreal, aquatic
Great diversity of reproductive modes
Mostly external fertilization
Many species with protrusible tongue for feeding

8. Reptile diversity Turtles (Chelonia) 300 species
Crocodiles, alligators, caimans (Crocodylia) 27 species
Tuatara (Sphenodon) 1-2 species
Lizards, snakes, amphisbaenids (Squamata) species
Birds (Aves) 9000 species

9. Reptile characteristics
Dry, scaly outer covering
Shelled eggs laid on land
Ectotherms

10. Turtle characteristics
Shell
Fused to ribs
Fused to vertebrae
Limb girdles lie inside ribcage
Jaws lack teeth
Terrestrial or aquatic

11. Crocodylian characteristics
Alligators, caimans, crocodiles, gavials
Large
1-8 meters
Complex parental care
Top-end predators

12. Lizard characteristics
6000+ species
2 or 4 limbs, or limbless
Oviparous, viviparous, ovoviviparous
Terrestrial, aquatic, arboreal, fossorial

14. What is Herpetology? The study of amphibians and reptiles Greek root
Herpein: to creep
Herpeton: creeping animal
"To herp" (verb): to look for herps
"Herps"
Amphibians: frogs, salamanders, caecilians
"Reptiles": lizards, amphisbaenids, snakes, crocodylians, tuataras, turtles

15. Why study amphibians and "reptiles" together as a single group?
An evolutionary grouping?
Amphibians and reptiles closest relatives?
Shared characteristics?
E.g., ectothermy
Tradition?
History

16. Diapsida

17. Why study amphibians and reptiles together as a single group?
An evolutionary grouping?
Amphibians and reptiles are not closest relatives
Shared characteristics?
E.g., ectothermy?
Tradition?
History

18. Shared characteristics of reptiles and amphibians
Ectothermy
Thermoregulation
Energy requirements
Body size and shape
Lay eggs (most)
Terrestrial (most)
Lack fur and feathers…

19. Differences between reptiles and amphibians
Amniotic egg
Integument
Claws
Heart
Skull
Fertilization
Moisture environment

20. Why study amphibians and reptiles together as a single group?
An evolutionary grouping?
Amphibians and reptiles are not close relatives
Shared characteristics?
Amphibians and reptiles differ greatly in anatomy and physiology
Tradition?
History

21. Why study amphibians and reptiles together? Tradition!
"Most amphibia are abhorrent because of their cold body, pale colour, cartilaginous skeleton, filthy skin, fierce aspect, calculating eye, offensive smell, harsh voice, squalid habitation, and terrible venom; and so their Creator has not exerted his powers to make many of them." Linnaeus (1750)

22. History of Herpetology Contributions to the History of Herpetology Kraig Adler; ssarherps.org
Aristotle ( BC): blood, locomotion, limbs, eggs
Carl Linnaeus ( ): Systema Naturae (1735+)
1700s-1800s: France is center
G. L. L. Comte de Buffon (Histoire Naturelle ), B. Lacepede: Histoire des Quadrupedes Ovipares (1788), Histoire des Serpientes (1789)
A. Brongniart (1799): Separation of Batrachians (amphibians)/reptiles
F. Daudin: Histoire Naturelle des Reptiles (1802)
A. Dumeril and G. Bibron: Erpetologie Generale ( )

23. History of Herpetology
Mid-1800s: Great Britain (J. Gray, A. Gunther, G. Boulenger)
Late 1800s: North America emerges
J. Holbrook: North American Herpetology ( )
E. D. Cope: The Crocodilians, Lizards, and Snakes of North America (1900)
L. Stejneger: Herpetology of Puerto Rico (1904)

24. Doris Cochran
Curator of Herpetology, Smithsonian

25. Herpetology in the US today
UC Berkeley
C Camp, R Stebbins, D Wake, M Wake, H Greene, C Moritz, J Mc Guire
U of Kansas
E Taylor, J Tihen, H Smith, H Fitch, W Duellman, L Trueb, R Brown, R Glor
USNM (Smithsonian)
D Cochran, J Peters, G Zug, R McDiarmid, R Heyer, K de Queiroz
UT Austin
F Blair, D Cannatella, D Hillis, E Pianka, M Ryan, C Gans
Harvard
T Barbour, A Romer, A Loveridge, E Williams, P Alberch, J Cadle, J Hanken, J Losos
American Museum of Natural History
M Dickerson, G Noble, C Bogart, C Myers, C Cole, D Frost

26. Herpetology in the US today
UC Berkeley
C Camp, R Stebbins, D Wake, M Wake, H Greene, C Moritz, J Mc Guire
U of Kansas
E Taylor, J Tihen, H Smith, H Fitch, W Duellman, L Trueb, R Brown, R Glor
USNM (Smithsonian)
D Cochran, J Peters, G Zug, R McDiarmid, R Heyer, K de Queiroz
UT Austin
F Blair, D Cannatella, D Hillis, E Pianka, M Ryan, C Gans
Harvard
T Barbour, A Romer, A Loveridge, E Williams, P Alberch, J Cadle, J Hanken, J Losos
American Museum of Natural History
M Dickerson, G Noble, C Bogart, C Myers, C Cole, D Frost

27. Herpetological societies
American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (ASIH; 1913; Copeia)
Herpetologists’ League (HL; 1946; Herpetologica, Herpetological Monographs)
Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles (SSAR; 1958; Journal of Herpetology, Herpetological Review)

28. Web resources Amphibiaweb.org reptile-database.org ssarherps.org
asih.org
herpetologistsleague.org
Journal of Herpetology, Copeia, Herpetologica, Amphibia-Reptilia, Herpetological Conservation and Biology, Phyllomedusa…

30. Systematics
Phylogenetics
Taxonomy
Classification
Nomenclature