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Some characteristics
of Amphiumidae: This family contains one genus (Amphiuma) with
three species that only occur in the coastal plain of the southeastern
US and the lower Mississippi Valley. Amphiumids resemble sirenids in being
elongate aquatic salamanders that do not have eyelids. However, amphiumids
have both pairs of limbs and have gill slits instead of external gills.
Their legs are tiny and only have two toes.
For the most part, amphiumids are aquatic, living in slow-flowing streams
and rivers near swamps, only occasionally do they move overland through
wet habitat, preferably during rainy nights.
Literature:
Salthe (1973). Amphiumidae, Amphiuma. Catalogue of American Amphibians
and Reptiles 147:1-4.
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