Reptiles & Amphibians
Latest Feature Articles
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Venomous Snakes
Only about 250 species of snakes have venom powerful enough to kill a human. Those snakes account for the deaths of an estimated 30,000-40,000 people per year worldwide.
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The Characteristics of Snakes
"Always carry a small flagon of whiskey in case of snakebite and furthermore always carry a small snake."
(W. C. Fields)
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The Characteristics of Lizards
Lizards and snakes are so morphologically similar that they are classified together into the same order and suborder.
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The Characteristics of Frogs and Toads
"Theories pass. The frog remains." (Jean Rostand)
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The Characteristics of Salamanders
"Salamander - borne in the sun-kissed flame. Who was it lit your candle and branded you with your name?"
(Lyrics from the Jethro Toll song "Salamander")
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The Characteristics of Caecilians
Lurking on or in the floor of tropical forests are the most unusual of all the amphibians-the legless caecilians.
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The Characteristics of Alligators and Crocodiles
Crocodilians are "living fossils" in the sense that they are the only remaining reptiles of the same lineage from which the dinosaurs and birds descended.
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The Characteristics of Turtles
Turtles, the most ancient lineage of the living reptiles, have scarcely changed over the course of their 260 million years history.
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The Characteristics of Amphibians
Amphibians are fishes out of water leading what amounts to a double existence. This duality is acknowledged even in their scientific name - Gr. amphi, dual + bios, life.
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The Characteristics of Reptiles
Through the evolution of a unique set of characteristics, reptiles were the first true terrestrial animals to appear.
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