List of amphibians facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The temnospondyl Eryops had sturdy limbs to support its body on land

Red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas) with limbs and feet specialised for climbing

Japanese giant salamander (Andrias japonicus), a primitive salamander

The bright colours of the common reed frog (Hyperolius viridiflavus) are typical of a toxic species

Wallace's flying frog (Rhacophorus nigropalmatus) can parachute to the forest floor from high in the trees.

Amphibians are ectothermic, tetrapod vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arboreal or freshwater aquatic ecosystems. Thus amphibians typically start out as larvae living in water, but some species have developed behavioural adaptations to bypass this.

A list of amphibians organizes the class of amphibian by family and subfamilies and mentions the number of species in each of them.

The list below largely follows Darrel Frost's Amphibian Species of the World (ASW), Version 5.5 (31 January 2011). Another classification, which largely follows Frost, but deviates from it in part is the one of AmphibiaWeb, which is run by the California Academy of Sciences and several of universities. The major differences between these two classifications are:

Frost's ASW has split several families from other families (i.e. elevated to distinct families), whereas AmphibiaWeb has not (i.e., keeping them within the original families as subfamilies):
- From Dendrobatidae: Aromobatidae
- From Myobatrachidae: Limnodynastidae
- From Ranidae: Ceratobatrachidae, Dicroglossidae, Mantellidae, Micrixalidae, Nyctibatrachidae, Petropedetidae, Phrynobatrachidae, Ptychadenidae, Pyxicephalidae, Ranixalidae, Rhacophoridae
AmphibiaWeb has also split a few families off from other families (i.e. elevated to distinct families), where Frost's ASW has not (i.e., keeping them within the original families):
- From Alytidae: Discoglossidae
- From Leiopelmatidae: Ascaphidae
- From Ambystomatidae: Dicamptodontidae
- From Caeciliidae: Scolecomorphidae, Typhlonectidae
- From Ichthyophiidae: Uraeotyphlidae

Class Amphibia
See also

Class Amphibia

There are a total of 8216 amphibian species in three orders.

Order Anura: frogs and toads

As of 29 August 2020 (2020 -08-29)^[update], 7243 species of frogs and toads are recognised by Amphibian Species of the World.

Suborder Archaeobatrachia

Family Alytidae – painted frogs or disc-tongued frogs, 12 species. Includes the genus Discoglossus (5 species) which is sometimes considered a distinct family, Discoglossidae.
Family Bombinatoridae – firebelly toads, 8 species
Family Leiopelmatidae – New Zealand primitive frogs, 3 species in genus Leiopelma.
Family Ascaphidae – tailed frogs. Two species in genus Ascaphus. Sometimes considered part of family Leiopelmatidae.

Suborder Mesobatrachia

Family Megophryidae – litter frogs or short legged toads, 268 species
- Subfamily Megophryinae – Asian spadefoot toads, 106 species
Family Pelobatidae – European spadefoot toads, 6 species
Family Pelodytidae – parsley frogs, 5 species
Family Pipidae – tongueless frogs, 41 species
Family Rhinophrynidae – Mexican burrowing toad, 1 species
Family Scaphiopodidae – American spadefoot toads, 7 species

Suborder Neobatrachia

Family Allophrynidae – Tukeit Hill frogs, 3 species
Family Alsodidae – 30 species
Family Arthroleptidae – screeching frogs or squeakers, 149 species
- Subfamily Arthroleptinae – 67 species
- Subfamily Astylosterninae – 30 species
- Subfamily Leptopelinae – 52 species
Family: Batrachylidae, 12 species
Superfamily Brachycephaloidea – 1170 species
- Family Brachycephalidae – saddleback toads, 74 species
- Family Craugastoridae – 865 species
- Subfamily Ceuthomantinae – 573 species; includes species formerly in subfamily Strabomantinae
- Subfamily Craugastorinae – 139 species
- Subfamily Holoadeninae – 153 species
- Family Eleutherodactylidae – 201 species
  - Subfamily Eleutherodactylinae – 217 species
  - Subfamily Phyzelaphryninae – 12 species
Family Brevicipitidae – 36 species
Family Bufonidae – true toads, 627 species
Family Calyptocephalellidae – 5 species
Family Centrolenidae – glass frogs, 156 species
- Subfamily: Centroleninae – 119 species
- Subfamily: Hyalinobatrachiinae – 35 species
Family Ceratobatrachidae – 102 species
- Subfamily Alcalinae – 5 species
- Subfamily Ceratobatrachinae – 90 species
- Subfamily Liuraninae – 7 species
Family Ceratophryidae – 12 species, formerly contained Batrachylidae and Telmatobiidae as subfamilies
Family Conrauidae – 6 species
Family Cycloramphidae – 36 species, formerly contained Alsodidae as subfamily
Superfamily Dendrobatoidea – 328 species
- Family Aromobatidae – 128 species, considered a subfamily of Dendrobatidae by AmphibiaWeb
  - Subfamily Allobatinae – 55 species
  - Subfamily Anomaloglossinae – 34 species
  - Subfamily Aromobatinae – 38 species
- Family Dendrobatidae – poison dart frogs, 200 species
  - Subfamily Colostethinae, 66 species
  - Subfamily Dendrobatinae, 61 species
  - Subfamily Hyloxalinae, 72 species
Family Dicroglossidae – 212 species
- Subfamily Dicroglossinae – 197 species
- Subfamily Occidozyginae – 15 species
Family Heleophrynidae – ghost frogs, 7 species
Family Hemiphractidae – 118 species
- Subfamily Cryptobatrachinae – 8 species
- Subfamily Hemiphractinae – 110 species
Family Hemisotidae – shovelnose frogs, 9 species
Family Hylidae – tree frogs, 1036 species
- Subfamily Hylinae – 747 species
- Subfamily Pelodryadinae – 222 species
- Subfamily Phyllomedusinae – 67 species
Family Hylodidae – 47 species
Family Hyperoliidae – sedge frogs or bush frogs, 228 species
- Subfamily Hyperoliinae – 203 species
- Subfamily Kassininae – 25 species
Family Leiopelmatidae – 3 species; formerly part of Ascaphidae
Family Leiuperidae – 86 species
Family Leptodactylidae – southern frogs or tropical frogs, 219 species
- Subfamily Leiuperinae – 101 species
- Subfamily Leptodactylinae – 103 species
- Subfamily Paratelmatobiinae – 14 species
Family Mantellidae – 231 species, formerly considered part of the family Ranidae
- Subfamily: Boophinae – 79 species
- Subfamily: Laliostominae – 7 species
- Subfamily: Mantellinae – 145 species
Family Micrixalidae – 24 species, considered part of the family Ranidae by AmphibiaWeb
Family Microhylidae – narrow-mouthed frogs, 698 species
- Subfamily Adelastinae – 1 species
- Subfamily Asterophryinae – 349 species
- Subfamily Cophylinae – 113 species
- Subfamily Dyscophinae – 3 species
- Subfamily Gastrophryninae – 79 species
- Subfamily Hoplophryninae – 3 species
- Subfamily Kalophryninae – 26 species
- Subfamily Melanobatrachinae – 1 species
- Subfamily Microhylinae – 101 species
- Subfamily Otophryninae – 6 species
- Subfamily Phrynomerinae – 5 species
- Subfamily Scaphiophryninae – 11 species
Superfamily Myobatrachoidea – 132 species
- Family Limnodynastidae, 43 species; considered a subfamily of Myobatrachidae by AmphibiaWeb
- Family Myobatrachidae – Australian ground frogs, 85 species
Family Nasikabatrachidae – 2 species; formerly included in family Sooglossidae
Family Nyctibatrachidae – 39 species; formerly considered part of the family Ranidae
- Subfamily Astrobatrachinae – 1 species
- Subfamily Lankanectinae – 2 species
- Subfamily Nyctibatrachinae – 36 species
Family Odontobatrachidae – 5 species
Family Odontophrynidae – 52 species
Family Petropedetidae – 13 species; formerly considered part of Ranidae
Family Phrynobatrachidae – 95 species; formerly considered part of Ranidae
Family Ptychadenidae – 60 species, formerly considered part of Ranidae
Family Pyxicephalidae – 85 species; formerly considered part of Ranidae
- Subfamily Cacosterninae – 79 species
- Subfamily Pyxicephalinae – 6 species
Family Ranidae – true frogs, 409 species
Family Ranixalidae – 18 species, formerly considered part of the family Ranidae
Family Rhacophoridae – moss frogs, 430 species, formerly considered part of the family Ranidae
- Subfamily Buergeriinae – 5 species
- Subfamily Rhacophorinae – 425 species
Family Sooglossidae Seychelles frogs, 4 species.
Family Telmatobiidae – 63 species

Order Caudata: Salamanders

As of 29 August 2020 (2020 -08-29)^[update], 759 species of salamanders are recognised by Amphibian Species of the World.

Suborder Cryptobranchoidea

Family Cryptobranchidae – giant salamanders, 4 species
Family Hynobiidae – Asiatic salamanders, 81 species
- - Subfamily Hynobiinae, 71 species
  - Subfamily Onychodactylinae – 10 species

Suborder Salamandroidea

Family Ambystomatidae – mole salamanders, 37 species. The Pacific mole salamanders of genus Dicamptodon (4 species) are considered a distinct family, Dicamptodontidae, by AmphibiaWeb:
Family Amphiumidae – amphiumas or Congo eels, 3 species
Family Plethodontidae – lungless salamanders, 488 species
- Subfamily Hemidactyliinae – 382 species; includes species formerly assigned to subfamilies Bolitoglossinae and Spelerpinae.
- Subfamily: Plethodontinae – 106 species
Family Proteidae – mudpuppies and waterdogs, 9 species
Family Rhyacotritonidae – torrent salamanders, 4 species
Family Salamandridae – true salamanders and newts, 128 species
- Subfamily Pleurodelinae, 110 species
- Subfamily Salamandrinae, 16 species
- Subfamily Salamandrininae, 2 species

Suborder Sirenoidea

Family Sirenidae – sirens, 5 species

Order Gymnophiona: Caecilians

As of 29 August 2020 (2020 -08-29)^[update], 214 species of caecilians are recognised by Amphibian Species of the World.

Family Caeciliidae – common caecilians, 44 species
Family Chikilidae – 4 species
Family Dermophiidae – 14 species
Family Herpelidae – 10 species
Family Ichthyophiidae – fish caecilians, 57 species. The genus Uraeotyphlus (7 species) is sometimes considered a distinct family, Uraeotyphlidae.
Family Indotyphlidae – 24 species
Family Rhinatrematidae – beaked caecilians, 13 species
Family Scolecomorphidae – 6 species; formerly considered a subfamily of Caeciliidae
Family Siphonopidae – 28 species
Family Typhlonectidae – 14 species; formerly considered a subfamily of Caeciliidae