Amphibians, Biodiversity of

Ross A. Alford, ... Keith R. McDonald, in Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, 2007

C. Special Features of Anurans

Anurans are invariably four-limbed, and terrestrial juveniles and adults completely
lack true tails. Adults range from about 1 to 30 cm in length. Their hindlimbs and
feet are greatly elongated. The radius and ulna of the forelimb and the tibia and
fibula of the hindlimb are usually fused. There are not more than nine trunk
vertebrae, and most modern frogs lack free ribs. The caudal vertebrae are fused
into a rod-shaped urostyle that is associated with the elongated pelvis. Most of
these features are probably the result of adaptation for light weight and strength
for jumping and show interesting convergences with similar adaptations in birds.
The lightweight skulls of frogs are large relatively to their body size and lack
many bones. All but one species lack teeth on the dentary bone of the lower jaw.
The tongue is attached at the front of the mouth in most species and is flipped
forward rapidly to capture the prey. The ears of frogs often have external tympanic
membranes.

The skins of frogs depart from the usual amphibian pattern in several ways. Some
species have additional types of glands: lipid glands which secrete lipids that
reduce rates of evaporative water loss or breeding glands that produce sticky
secretions, which adhere the male to the female during amplexus. Skin lipids and
other as yet poorly understood modifications of the skin allow some tree frogs to
achieve rates of evaporative water loss as low as those of some lizards. Frogs also
have distinct differences between their dorsal and ventral skins. The ventral skin
usually has fewer granular and mucous glands, and many terrestrial species have an
area called the pelvic patch in which thin and highly vascularized skin can be
exposed. Water uptake from substrates via the pelvic patch is the primary means by
which almost all species of frogs obtain water. Burrowing desert frogs of several
lineages form cocoons by repeatedly shedding their skins and retaining the shed
layers to reduce evaporative water loss while they are buried.

Frogs have a variety of adaptations to structures other than the skin for
maintaining water balance. Most species store copious quantities of dilute urine in
the bladder when water is available and withdraw water from this pool to replace
evaporative losses. Desert species and species that inhabit brackish water can
allow high concentrations of urea to accumulate in the body fluids. A few species
can excrete nitrogenous wastes as uric acid, which minimizes the water lost when
they are excreted.

Reproductive Modes
Laurie J. Vitt, Janalee P. Caldwell, in Herpetology (Third Edition), 2009

Egg Brooding
Brooding in anurans involves retaining the eggs and/or larvae on the body of the
parent for a longer period of time than that required to simply transport the
larvae from a nest site to an aquatic site. A variety of behaviors can be observed
among the many species that exhibit brooding. Eggs may be carried only until they
develop into larvae, or they may be carried until they metamorphose into froglets.
In aromobatids and dendrobatids, the eggs are not carried but hatch in a
terrestrial nest. In most species, tadp