Caecilian: facts, photo & sounds

Fascinating facts about the Caecilian

The skin-feeding behaviour (dermatophagy) was only discovered in 2006. Mothers lose up to 14% of their body mass during a single feeding cycle.
Aquatic caecilians (Typhlonectes) give birth to live young that hatch with temporary external gills — the only amphibians to do so in an aquatic environment.
Because they live entirely underground, many caecilian species are discovered only during road construction or agricultural excavations. New species are still being found regularly.

At a glance

RangeCentral and South America, sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia

HabitatTropical rainforest soil, leaf litter, stream banks

DietEarthworms, termites, small vertebrates (burrowing species); aquatic species eat fish and larvae

About the Caecilian

Caecilians are the third and least-known order of amphibians — relatives of frogs and salamanders that lost their limbs and eyes as they evolved into dedicated burrowers. They look like large earthworms or snakes but are neither. Some species practice a remarkable form of parental care: growing a thick, nutrient-rich outer skin layer for their young to strip and eat.

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