Skip to main content

Amphibian Traits: Dual Life and Permeable Skin

This video presents the same text shown beside it, spoken and on screen. It adds nothing the text does not say.

State

Most amphibians live a dual life, developing as aquatic larvae before metamorphosing into a terrestrial adult, relying on moist skin for gas exchange.

Show

A frog tadpole breathes through gills in water, then metamorphoses into an air-breathing adult that still absorbs oxygen through skin.

Watch for

Permeable skin that aids gas exchange also leaves amphibians vulnerable to water-borne pollutants and dehydration outside moist habitats.