Skin-Eating Amphibian Discovered in French Guiana

Scientists from Harvard University have discovered a new species of caecilian in French Guiana, where the newborn peel offs and feeds on their mother's skin, reports Planet Earth.

The newly-discovered worm-like amphibian named Microcaecilia dermatophaga (little skin-eating caecilian), discovered by Dr. Emma Sherratt from Harvard University, is the first species of caecilian to be spotted in French Guiana in the last 150 years. It's one of the four species of caecilian that is known to have such a rare and unique child-rearing strategy.

"What we've found is another species that's a skin-feeder, but most importantly, it's another species that's quite distantly related to other skin-feeders we've found, meaning that skin-feeding is probably an ancestral characteristic for caecilians," Dr. Sherratt was quoted as saying in Planet Earth.

According to the scientists, this new finding is crucial, as it helps them understand the mysterious amphibians. Compared to the other caecilians, this new species is different, as it has fewer ridges along its body. Apart from this, it is more pink in color when compared to its closest relations, which range from light pink to gray. It is not gray in color as it lacks the pigment that imparts the color.

Reports according to Planet Earth state that in order to feed their young ones, the mothers grow an extra layer of skin that is rich in fat, and the newborns peel off the skin with the help of their teeth and feed on it. The task of peeling the skin is done with a special set of teeth that is specially used in this task. This is later replaced by pointed adult teeth as they get older.

Dr. Sherratt states that not much is known about these creatures. Based on molecular estimates, they are probably 250 million years old.

The details of the findings are published in the journal PLoS ONE.