Page:British Reptiles, Amphibians, and Fresh-water Fishes.djvu/44

BRITISH AMPHIBIANS additional segment owing to the elongation of the astragalus and calcareum in the metatarsus." This is all important to the student of anatomy, and is A.B.C. to the scientist, but to the general reader it is useless information, likely to deter him from following our story any further. Frog and Toad tadpoles are born with tails, and possess these essential appendages during the first part of their existence. Gradually, however, the tail, or rather its constituents, are absorbed, and eventually disappear altogether. The Caudata (Newts), however, are differently fashioned, having narrow lizard-like bodies, to which is attached throughout the whole of life a prominent caudal appendage, which is of distinct service in helping the somewhat sluggish creature to propel itself through the water. Some members of the Caudata have teeth, others are toothless. Some again have only two limbs, others have four. Some have moveable eyelids, others do not possess any. These remarks do not, however, refer to our British species of Newts, all of which have two pairs of limbs, teeth in both jaws, and moveable eyelids. The metamorphoses through which Frogs, Toads, and Newts pass is one of the most wonderful events in the whole realm of wild life, and perhaps passes our comprehension more than the marvellous processes undergone by an insect before it reaches the perfect state. Whilst Frog's eggs are deposited in masses, a familiar enough object in early Spring in any wayside pond, those of its first cousin, the Toad, are laid in strings. Very beautiful objects these 28