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caecilian

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

caecilian , any of the legless, tailless tropical amphibians of the family Caecilidae. Most adult caecilians resemble earthworms superficially but have vertebrate characteristics such as jaws and teeth. They range in size from 7 in. to 4.5 ft (18 cm-140 cm); most are about 1 ft (30 cm) long. Their bodies are ringed with grooves, which in some species contain small scales imbedded in the skin; possession of scales is a primitive amphibian trait. There is a groove on either side of the head, each containing a retractable sensory tentacle. The eyes of caecilians are nearly functionless, and some species are eyeless. Caecilians are found in swampy places in most tropical parts of the world, but are seldom seen because of their burrowing behavior. They eat small invertebrates such as termites and earthworms. A few species remain aquatic as adults and resemble eels. There are about 50 species of caecilians, divided into 16 genera. They are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Amphibia, order Gymnophiona (or Apoda), family Caecilidae.


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The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press

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Squeeze Play
; ...Cuban cigar. Like common earthworms, caecilians' brown-gray bodies sport closely spaced...as latching onto a fifty-pound bass. Caecilians so seldom have contact with people that...name. Although they are amphibians, caecilians are denizens of the terrestrial underworld... Read more
Reproductive Biology and Phylogeny of Gymnophiona (Caecilians).(Brief Article)(Book Review)
; 1578083125 Reproductive biology and phylogeny of Gymnophiona (Caecilians) Ed. by Jean-Marie Exbrayar. Science Publishers, Inc. 2006...Hardcover Reproductive biology and phylogeny; v.5 QL391 The Caecilians are the little known, snake-like third order of amphibians... Read more
Rare fossils of enigmatic amphibian. (caecilians)
; ...the entire fossil record of ancient caecilians has long consisted of only two small...most surprisingly, limb bones. Modern caecilians show no trace of legs even during the...size, Jenkins surmises that the ancient caecilians also burrowed underground. Already by... Read more
Balloons with backbones.(legless amphibian called caecilian uses hydrostatic pressure to move)(Brief Article)
; ...caecilian. Unlike other vertebrates, caecilians have muscles that ring the body wall...contracting those muscles, O'Reilly found, the caecilians pressurize the fluid in their body cavity...arch itself through the earth. What the caecilians can do that snakes can't, O'Reilly says... Read more
Just turn your back, Mom.(ZOOLOGY)(Brief article)
; ...species of legless amphibians called caecilians nourishes her youngsters by letting...says an international research team. Caecilians, which look like worms or snakes, burrow...these young resemble teeth of fetal caecilians in live-birth species. Scientists speculate... Read more
Oh, the Trials of Motherhood
; When it comes to mothering, some caecilians willingly give the skin off their backs. Caecilians are tropical, soil-dwelling, legless amphibians that range in length from four inches to more than four feet. They look like giant earthworms. Alexander... Read more
La fauna anfibia en la region de Villavicencio en el este de Colombia.(Zoología)
; ...amphibian fauna consisting of three caecilians, 45 frogs, and one salamander. This...in the country as a whole. Key words. Caecilians, Frogs, Piedmont, Salamanders, Zoogeography...Carranza & Lynch, 1998), all of the caecilians (Lynch, 2000), and all of the gladiator... Read more
SCIENCE NEWS BRIEFING.(News/National/International)
; ...Medicine south of San Francisco. AMPHIBIANS Caecilians not really worms They look like gargantuan...worms. Biologists had long assumed that caecilians, legless relatives of frogs and salamanders...whose bodies are relatively rigid, caecilians are ``just a big sack of fluid,'' said... Read more
4,780 and counting
; ...well-documented decline in the number of amphibians-frogs and toads, salamanders and newts, and their legless, wormlike kin, the caecilians. To understand the full scope of the problem, scientists need to determine not only how many species are declining but also... Read more
Amazing amphibians
; ...the lizard-looking salamanders and newts. Lastly, there are caecilians, which are worm-like creatures found only in tropical areas...that are used to catch their prey. All amphibians, except caecilians, are four-legged creatures. Their webbed feet help them swim... Read more

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caecilian
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Caecilian
Caecilian (d. before 343), Bp. of Carthage from 311 or perhaps 307. His importance lies in his part in the opening stages of the Donatist controversy. The rigorist party at Carthage consecrated a rival bishop, urging that Caecilian's consecration was invalid on the ground that he had been consecrated by a ‘ ... Read more
caecilian
caecilian Underground burrowing amphibian found in Central and South America, s Asia and Africa. Its worm-like body varies from c. 18–135cm (7–53in) in length and its colour from black to pink. There are sensory tentacles between the eyes, which are tiny and often useless. Read more
caecilian
...between the eye and nostril. Some species lay eggs, which are guarded by the female and hatch into free-living larvae; other species bear live young. Caecilians spend their lives underground and eat worms and insects. caecilian caecilian caecilian Read more

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