Three-colored Caecilian
The three-colored caecilian (Ichthyophis tricolor) belongs to Ichthyophis, a genus of striped, burrowing, limbless amphibians of South and Southeast Asia. Like other members of the genus, it has a larval stage with gills that lives in streams.
The three-colored caecilian (Ichthyophis tricolor) belongs to Ichthyophis, a genus of striped, burrowing, limbless amphibians of South and Southeast Asia. Like other members of the genus, it has a larval stage with gills that lives in streams.
🧬 Field Guide Specimen: Open Three-colored Caecilian in the CRV Science Field Guide to log the specimen, see its place among the Tetrapoda lineages in the Cladogram Explorer, and test your recall in the Red List conservation game.
A Mother Who Coils: Egg Guarding
Females of Ichthyophis lay eggs in burrows near water and coil their bodies around them, guarding them from predators and fungi until they hatch into gilled larvae.
Biphasic Life
The larvae wriggle to water, where they live for a time before metamorphosing into burrowing adults. Unlike many other caecilians, ichthyophiids retain this classic amphibian two-phase life cycle.
Hidden Diversity
Caecilians live underground and are often seen only after rain, so species are poorly known. New species are still being described, and many may be threatened by clearing of forest.
Three-colored Caecilian at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Ichthyophis tricolor |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Amphibia |
| Order | Gymnophiona |
| Family | Ichthyophiidae |
| Field Guide group | Tetrapoda: Amphibia (Frogs, Salamanders & Caecilians) |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | Cylindrical limbless body with broad lateral yellow stripes, minute subcutaneous calcified scales within dermal annuli. |
| IUCN Red List status | Least Concern (LC), assessed 2004 |
| Order | Gymnophiona |
| Genus | Ichthyophis |
See Also
- Ringed Caecilian — a South American caecilian
- Deforestation — threats to hidden species