page_title: Caecilian
section_title: Taxonomy
hierarchical_section_title: Caecilian / Taxonomy
context_page_description: The Caecilians are an order of amphibians. Most of them look like either earthworms or snakes. They burrow in the ground. For this reason, they are the least explored order of amphibians.
context_section_description: Taxonomically the caecilians are divided into ten families. The species numbers are approximate and many of these species are identified on the basis of only one specimen. It is likely that not all species have been described yet, and that some of the species described below as different may be combined into one species in future reclassifications.
  Beaked Caecilians (Rhinatrematidae) – 2 genera, 9 species
  Fish Caecilians (Ichthyophiidae) – 2 genera, 39 species
  Indian Caecilians (Uraeotyphlidae) – 1 genus, 5 species
  Tropical Caecilians (Scolecomorphidae) – 2 genera, 6 species
  Aquatic Caecilians (Typhlonectidae) – 5 genera, 13 species
  Common Caecilians (Caeciliidae) – 26 genera, 99 species
  The recent discovery of a tenth family in north-east India has been announced.
caption: Caecilian from the San Antonio zoo
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