This article is about an order of amphibians. For the bishop of Carthage, see Caecilianus.
Caecilian
Temporal range: Late Triassic (Norian) – Present, 223–0 Ma
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Oscaecilia ochrocephala (Caeciliidae)
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Amphibia
Subclass:
Lissamphibia
Order:
Gymnophiona Müller, 1832[1]
Subgroups
†Eocaecilia
†Funcusvermis
†Rubricacaecilia
†Chinlestegophis?
Clade Apoda Oppel, 1811
Caeciliidae
Chikilidae
Dermophiidae
Herpelidae
Ichthyophiidae
Grandisoniidae
Rhinatrematidae
Scolecomorphidae
Siphonopidae
Typhlonectidae
Synonyms[1]
Gymnophia Rafinesque, 1814
Caecilians (/sɪˈsɪliən/; New Latin for 'blind ones') are a group of limbless, vermiform (worm-shaped) or serpentine (snake-shaped) amphibians with small or sometimes nonexistent eyes. They mostly live hidden in soil or in streambeds, and this cryptic lifestyle renders caecilians among the least familiar amphibians. Modern caecilians live in the tropics of South and Central America, Africa, and southern Asia. Caecilians feed on small subterranean creatures such as earthworms. The body is cylindrical and often darkly coloured, and the skull is bullet-shaped and strongly built. Caecilian heads have several unique adaptations, including fused cranial and jaw bones, a two-part system of jaw muscles, and a chemosensory tentacle in front of the eye. The skin is slimy and bears ringlike markings or grooves and may contain scales.[2]
Modern caecilians are a clade, the order Gymnophiona/ˌdʒɪmnəˈfaɪənə/ (or Apoda/ˈæpədə/), one of the three living amphibian groups alongside Anura (frogs) and Urodela (salamanders). Gymnophiona is a crown group, encompassing all modern caecilians and all descendants of their last common ancestor. There are more than 220 living species of caecilian classified in 10 families. Gymnophionomorpha is a recently coined name for the corresponding total group which includes Gymnophiona as well as a few extinct stem-group caecilians (extinct amphibians whose closest living relatives are caecilians but are not descended from any caecilian).[3][4] Some palaeontologists have used the name Gymnophiona for the total group and the old name Apoda for the crown group[5]. However, Apoda has other even older uses, including as the name of a genus of Butterfly making its use potentially confusing and best avoided. 'Gymnophiona' derives from the Greek words γυμνος / gymnos (Ancient Greek for 'naked') and οφις / ophis (Ancient Greek for 'snake'), as the caecilians were originally thought to be related to snakes and to lack scales.[6]
The study of caecilian evolution is complicated by their poor fossil record and specialized anatomy. Genetic evidence and some anatomical details (such as pedicellate teeth) support the idea that frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (collectively known as lissamphibians) are each others' closest relatives. Frogs and salamanders show many similarities to dissorophoids, a group of extinct amphibians in the order Temnospondyli. Caecilians are more controversial; many studies extend dissorophoid ancestry to caecilians. Some studies have instead argued that caecilians descend from extinct lepospondyl or stereospondyl amphibians, contradicting evidence for lissamphibian monophyly (common ancestry). Rare fossils of early gymnophionans such as Eocaecilia and Funcusvermis have helped to test the various conflicting hypotheses for the relationships between caecilians and other living and extinct amphibians.
^ abFrost, Darrel R. (2019). "Gymnophiona Müller, 1832". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
^Wilkinson M (2012). "Caecilians" (PDF). Current Biology. 22 (17): R668–R669. Bibcode:2012CBio...22.R668W. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2012.06.019. PMID 22974987.
^Cite error: The named reference Santosetal20 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference Evans&SigogneauRussell2001 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Wilkinson, M. (2012). Caecilians. Current Biology, 22(17), R668-R669.
Caecilians (/sɪˈsɪliən/; New Latin for 'blind ones') are a group of limbless, vermiform (worm-shaped) or serpentine (snake-shaped) amphibians with small...
morphḗ, 'form') are a family of caecilians also known as tropical caecilians, buried-eyed caecilians, or African caecilians. They are found in Cameroon in...
Ichthyophis glutinosus, the Ceylon caecilian or common yellow-banded caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Ichthyophiidae endemic to Sri Lanka...
living orders: Anura (frogs), Urodela (salamanders), and Gymnophiona (caecilians). Evolved to be mostly semiaquatic, amphibians have adapted to inhabit...
Dermophis mexicanus, also known commonly as the Mexican burrowing caecilian or the Mexican caecilian, and locally as the tapalcua or tepelcua, is a species of...
The Western Ghats in India are home to several species of caecilians (Gymnophiona). Caecilians are legless, burrowing amphibians which mostly live in leaf...
insects, nematode worms, pseudoscorpions, and other arachnids as well as in caecilian amphibians. The specifics of how matriphagy occurs varies among different...
Atretochoana eiselti is a species of caecilian originally known only from two preserved specimens discovered by Sir Graham Hales in the Brazilian rainforest...
Uraeotyphlus is a genus of caecilians in the family Ichthyophiidae. There are seven species in this genus, all of which are endemic to the Western Ghats...
Siphonops annulatus, the ringed caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Siphonopidae endemic to South America. It may have the broadest known...
the red caecilian, sharp-nosed caecilian, dark-brown caecilian, pale-throated caecilian, or harp-tailed caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family...
Typhlonectes natans, also incorrectly called the rubber eel, is a species of caecilian in the family Typhlonectidae found in Colombia, Venezuela, and possibly...
Caeciliidae is the family of common caecilians. They are found in Central and South America. Like other caecilians, they superficially resemble worms or...
Rhinatrematidae is a family of caecilians, also known as the Neotropical tailed caecilians, American tailed caecilians. or beaked caecilians. They are found in the...
Asiatic tailed caecilians or fish caecilians found in South and Southeast Asia as well as southernmost China. They are primitive caecilians, lacking many...
common names Tenmalai caecilian, Tenmalai blind caecilian, Ramaswami's caecilian, and forest caecilian is a species of caecilian. It is endemic to the...
Ichthyophis is a genus of caecilians (limbless amphibians, sometimes called the Asian caecilians) found in Southeast Asia, the southern Philippines, and...
Typhlonectes compressicauda, the Cayenne caecilian, is a species of amphibian in the family Typhlonectidae that lives in water. It is found in Amazonian...
Ichthyophis mindanaoensis, also known as Todaya caecilian or Mindanao Island caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Ichthyophiidae. It is endemic...
Crotaphatrema lamottei, the Mount Oku caecilian or Lamotte's caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Scolecomorphidae. It is endemic to Mount...
Boulengerula niedeni, the Sagalla caecilian, is a worm-like amphibian first described in 2005. The species was described from a specimen discovered on...
Ichthyophis davidi, the Chorla giant striped caecilian, is a new caecilian species of India discovered in Chorla, a village situated on the borders of...
species. It is also known as the yellow-striped caecilian, Beddome's caecilian, or Nilgherries caecilian. Adults measure 210–270 mm (8.3–10.6 in) in total...
limbless caecilians and their extinct relatives). Salientians and caudatans are likely more closely related to each other than to caecilians. The name...
commonly known as the Mahadeyi caecilian, Mhadei caecilian, or Mhadei's blind caecilian, is a species of caecilian belonging to the family Grandisoniidae...
of caecilian in the family Grandisoniidae. The only species is Sylvacaecilia grandisonae, also known as the Aleku caecilian or Ethiopian caecilian. It...
Chikila fulleri, also known as the Kuttal caecilian, Fuller's caecilian, and Fuller's chikila, is a species of caecilian from South Asia. In 2012 it was reassigned...
Praslinia cooperi, or Cooper's black caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Grandisoniidae. It is monotypic in the genus Praslinia. It is found...
completely absorbed upon leaving the water for the first time. Basal caecilians such as Ichthyophis go through a metamorphosis in which aquatic larva...
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