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'Flesh-eating' amphibians filmed

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I'll no longer think of amphibians being peacefull...neither will the first thing to pop into my head will be a cute little frog...still a little cute...anyway, one of the strangest meal-times in the animal kingdom has been caught on film by a BBC crew.
The team recorded footage of a female worm-like amphibian, called a caecilian, allowing her young to peel off and eat her skin.

Scientists have only recently discovered this bizarre parental behaviour.

The female caecilian's skin becomes thicker and more nutrient-rich when she bears offspring.

And the young have specialised teeth for tearing and removing it.


The footage was recorded for the BBC One series Life In Cold Blood.

The crew was able to catch this behaviour on camera by building a set which resembled the shallow, humid underground chambers that the creatures live in.

It took several attempts to capture the footage; the caecilian babies would only eat their mother's skin for about 10 minutes, once every three days, and often at night.

Life In Cold Blood is on BBC One on Monday, 11 February at 2100 GMT and is repeated on BBC One on Sunday, 17 February at 1800 GMT.
steadward

5 responses // 'Flesh-eating' amphibians filmed

  • I wonder some of my other worst nightmares will be discovered to exist in reality.
    joshuaheller
  • Damn... Worms have teeth now? WTF!?
    NateTheGreat
  • interesting animals...
    jade_azul16
  • The babies were kind of cute when they were yawning. But the whole feeding frenzy killed it for me. Still interesting to know.
    sraevoz
  • Even though it's discuting ni it's way, I'll admit, It's still a beutiful thing, she'll give herself for her young, gaurd them no matter what. It's ALMOST like when there's a neglected mother dog starving, she'll still alow her young to suck what-evers left...but stilll a bit out there yes.
    steadward

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