Amphibians are animals that live PARTLY in water and PARTLY on land. Frogs, toads, NEWTS, and salamanders are all amphibians. REPTILES have dry, scaly skin, but AMPHIBIANS have soft, moist skin. Most amphibians can breathe through their skin, but only if it stays damp. Adult amphibians can also BREATHE through lungs. Most amphibians breed in water Unlike reptiles, which lay . tough-shelled eggs on land, most amphibians lay soft, jellylike eggs in water. Most frogs live near a river or pools of water. But in rainforests, it is so humid the trees are wet all the time, allowing some frogs to stay in them permanently. They are called tree frogs and have huge, sticky fingers to help them climb. Most baby amphibians live entirely in water. Called tadpoles, they swim like fish and breathe through gills. As they grow up, they develop legs and crawl onto land, but they must always be in wet places. When a tadpole hatches out of an egg, its first task in life is to eat what’s left of its egg, which is full of nutrients. In most amphibians, the tadpole changes into an adult by a process called metamorphosis
