Amphibians Breathe With Gill. All amphibians have gills when they first hatch from their eggs. Breathing through gills is carried out by animals which live in water, with very few exceptions.

The skin has to remain wet for this to function. As they grow, their gills disappear and lungs take place. All amphibians have gills when they first hatch from their eggs.

The eggs then hatch into larvae, or tadpoles, that breathe through external gills.

The living amphibians (frogs, toads, salamanders, and caecilians) depend on aquatic respiration to a degree that varies with species, stage of development, temperature, and season. The skin has to remain wet for this to function. In some species, like many salamanders, they rely on chemical cues called pheromones for mating. It is clearly apparent that there is a gradual transition from the strictly aquatic fish using gills to the purely terrestrial mammal using lungs, but many transitional species among air breathing fishes and amphibians can use both modes of gas exchange.