Amphibian means living two lives: one in water and one on land. These animals show off this incredible metamorphosis each spring, as they emerge from clumps of eggs in ditches and ponds to hopping frogs on land.
Reptiles, like amphibians, are also cold-blooded vertebrates, who lay eggs, but are different because they have scales. We have only a few reptiles on PEI, all species of slithery snakes!
Learning and sharing about these cold-blooded creatures is fun because it can be so hands-on. Collecting tadpoles and watching them grow into frogs allows students and teachers to observe unique adaptations, competition, and feeding behaviours. Diving into the world of small, skin-breathing animals also fosters care and compassion for living beings who look very different from us, which is important when learning about environmental responsibility.
Making them a great topic for discussing the evolution of natural history! The evolution of the lungfish being the first animal with legs, and able to crawl on land was the beginning of all animals on land about 350 million years ago, paving the way for life as we know it.
Newts