Formulacion Y Evaluacion de Proyectos

Néstor Rodrigo Gadea Montenegro Level VII August 08, 2013 Reptiles vs. Amphibians There are a lot of lives all over the world, which are classified in kingdoms. Among those kingdoms there is the most important that is named Animalia; basically, it is the kingdom that controls the world such as birds, fishes, human beings, reptiles, and amphibians. It is easy to differentiate between the animals of this kingdom. However, what people commonly misunderstand is to identify the reptiles and amphibians. In comparing reptiles and amphibians there are a couple of differences and similarities to keep in mind. The main similarity that reptiles and amphibians have is that both are vertebrates. As almost each person knows, vertebrates have a spinal column which is composed of vertebras; this means that they have bones in their body. A second similarity is that they are chromatophores; these kinds of animals have pigment-bearing cells that permit them to change the pigmentation of their skin by expanding and contracting (“Webster’s Third New International Dictionary”). On the other hand, they also have differences. The first difference is that they have two different ways to breath. Lungs are the principal breathing organs of reptiles; those lungs are separated into compartments much like the mammals (Capula 115); on the contrary, amphibians breathe not only through the lungs but also through the skin. Lazzaro Spallanzani, an Italian physiologist, said, “He removed the lungs of frogs and showed that these animals used oxygen and produced carbon dioxide as did intact frogs” (qtd. in Wells 157). The second difference is where reptiles and amphibians lay their eggs; this is called oviposition. Amphibians lay their eggs in gelatinous chains in the water by their mother that is attending to them until they are born from the egg. (Capula 18); however, reptiles’ eggs are laid into the ground by the mother without taking care of them (117). For

example, iguanas descend to the

Cited: Capula, Massino. Simon & Schuster’s Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of the World. New York: Simon & Schuster New York, 1989. Campos, Zilca, Arnaud L. J. Desbiez. Structure of Size and Reproduction of Green Iguanas in the Brazilian Pantanal. International Reptile Conservation Foundation. 20 June. 2013: 75-78 Babcock, Philip. Webster International Dictionary. Third Edition. Merriam-Webster INC. Massachusetts, 1986 Wells. Kentwood David. The Ecology and Behavior of Amphibians. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2007.