I'm curious.
2007-02-26 16:09:58 · 3 answers · asked by Nerds Rule! 6 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
It is true that amphibians must lay their eggs in water, but most amphibians need to stay in water for a more important reason: they breathe over their skin as well as over their gills or lungs (or in some cases both!) and their skin needs to stay moist for this. Just as lungs or gills need to stay moist for proper gas transfer to occur.
The amphibians that don't live in water live near it, or in or near other damp places where they can keep moist.
2007-02-26 19:54:39 · answer #1 · answered by Marianne M 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If they didn't spend part of their lives in water they wouldn't be amphibians. Other than as tadpoles, I don't think they necessarily have to be in the water, but I think that is where they hid from predators, spawn, and being in the water probably helps them regulate their body temperature. Also, some amphibians hibernate under the mud at the bottom of lakes and rivers.
2007-02-26 16:19:54 · answer #2 · answered by Justin H 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Their eggs (and babies) are not capable of surviving out of water, so they must return to the water to breed.
2007-02-26 16:47:34 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋