POSITION OF AMPHIBIA 



CHAPTER IX 



Amphibia and Fishes 



THE amphibia, those cold-blooded and reptile-like 

 creatures, really stand midway between the 

 reptiles proper and the underlying fishes. A study even 

 of those characters which can be seen without recourse 

 to the scalpel help in fixing pretty definitely the place 

 of the amphibia in the scheme of Nature. It will be 

 convenient to emphasize the relationships and differ- 

 ences between the amphibia and the reptiles by taking 

 two representative types, one of each, and then com- 

 paring them character by character. Later the results 

 can be amended by the consideration of exceptions, so 

 as to apply to the whole group in either case. We may 

 select for our comparison the North American Meno- 

 branchus, of which there are practically certain to be 

 examples in the Reptile House, and any lizard among the 

 large assortment contained in the same house ; let us 

 say either of the common British species, Lacerta vivi- 

 para or agilis. The newt-like amphibian is purely 

 aquatic, while the lizard is as eminently terrestrial, 

 selecting indeed especially the driest of sandy localities. 

 The Menobranchus loves coolness and darkness ; the 

 lizard rejoices in the day and in warm sunlight. The 

 skin of the menobranch is soft and slimy ; not only are 

 there no scales of any kind, but the epidermis is 

 everywhere developed into slime-producing glands, 

 which cover the body with their secretions. In the 



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