Field Guide: Amphibians of Manu | Page 264

Siphonopidae Siphonopidae includes a group of heavy girth and ringed caecilians. It has 2 species in Peru, 1 in the Madre de Dios department and 1 in the Manu area of which we include 1 species in this guide. The members of this South American family are usually dark or pink in appearance often with a ringed pattern, and have diminished eye function, in some cases the eyes are completely covered with skin or even bone. Siphonopidae They are highly fossorial species that occur in open areas as well as forests. Some are adaptable and are able to tolerate disturbed habitats. They are quite shy and often burrow when disturbed. They do not use the projectile tongues found in other amphibians, but are insectivorous. Little is known about the breeding behaviour for many species of this family, although we know that they lay eggs. Species of the genus Siphonus are thought to lack an aquatic larval stage and to develop directly. Females guard their eggs in chambers and eggs hatch into non pigmented young. Hatchlings have been described to feed on the outer layer of skin of their mothers, a trait that is thought to be common throughout the family. Siphonops annulatus