Unit 6.

Vertebrates

1. Fish
2. Amphibians
3. Reptiles
4. Birds
5. Mammals IES MAESTRO HAEDO
Dpto. Ciencias Naturales
Prof. Ángel Viñas San Narciso
 1. Fish
a) Environment: aquatic (fresh water or salt water)
b) Anatomy:
– They have fins.
– They have a hydrodynamic body and wet scaly skin
which helps fish to move through water.
c) Functions:
─ Nutrition: they are ectotherms; their temperature
changes with the environment they live in.
─ Respiration: they breathe through gills. Gills have a lot
of blood vessels for gas exchange (O2 and CO2) between
fish and water.
─ Reproduction: External fecundation. They lay eggs with
no shell.
d) Classification of fish:
─ Jawless fish: they are the most primitive living fish.
• They have a cartilaginous skeleton.
• They are the only fish without jaws.
• Examples: lamprey and hagfish
─ Cartilaginous fish:
• They have a cartilaginous skeleton
• Gill openings without operculum.
• Examples: sharks, rays, manta rays…
– Bony fish: they are the most modern living fish.
• They have a bony skeleton.
• Their gills are protected by a hard cover, called the
operculum
• They have a swim bladder (an internal sac of gas) which
fills up and empties so the fish can surface and dive
easily.
• Examples: hake, sardine, trout, cod, tuna…
Hydrodynamic shape
Cartilaginous fish without jaws
Cartilaginous fish
Gills without operculum of sharks
Bony fish
The swim bladder working
 2. Amphibians
a) Environment: terrestrial, but near to water /
moisture.
b) Anatomy:
– They have four limbs.
– Their skin is very thin and it must be kept wet to prevent
dehydration.
c) Functions:
─ Nutrition: they are ectotherms; some hibernate in cold
seasons.
─ Respiration:
• Adults: they breathe through lungs and through the skin
(cutaneous breathing). Some breathe through gills.
• Young adults: they are aquatic and breathe through gills.
─ Reproduction: external and internal fecundation. They lay
jelly-coated eggs in water.
─ Development: stages of the frog’s metamorphosis:
• Baby frogs hatch as tadpoles with gills and tails but no
legs.
• Tadpoles develop back legs.
• They develop lungs and front legs and lose gills and tails.
• Eggs fertilization.
d) Classification:
─ Anura:
1. They do not have a tail.
2. Their back legs are longer than the front legs, so they can
jump and swim
3. Examples: frogs and toads
─ Urodela:
1. They have a tail.
2. They have four legs of similar length.
3. Examples: newts and salamanders.
Amphibians breathing
Amphibian gills breathing adult
Jelly-coated amphibian eggs
Newt
Salamander
 3. Reptiles
a) Environment: mainly terrestrial.
b) Anatomy:
– They have four limbs, each with five digits with claws.
– Their skin is covered by thick and impermeable scales.
c) Functions:
─ Nutrition: they are ectotherms.
─ Respiration: they breathe through lungs
─ Reproduction: internal fecundation. They lay eggs with
a hard and impermeable shell. The babies look like the
adults.
d) Classification:
─ Turtles: their bodies are in a hard bony shell called
carapace. It includes the terrestrial tortoises.
─ Lizards: chameleons, iguanas, lizards…
─ Snakes: they have legless and long bodies. They are
carnivores and have a venomous bite.
─ Crocodiles: they are the biggest living reptiles. They are
great predators and live in aquatic environments.
Reptiles reproduction
 Turtle Tortoise
Chameleon
Iguana
 Poisonous teeth

Snake

Crocodile