Tadpole
Embryos (and one tadpole) of
the wrinkled frog (Rana rugosa).
A
tadpole is a larval
frog or
toad. In this stage it breathes by means of external or internal
gills, is at first lacking
legs, and has a finlike
tail. As a tadpole matures, it
metamorphoses by gradually growing limbs and then absorbing its tail.
Most tadpoles are herbivorous, subsisting on algae. In a few species, some tadpoles turn cannibalistic under harsh conditions and feed on other tadpoles living in the pond.
Tadpole is a 2002 film directed by Gary Winick about a boy who falls in love with an older woman. See: Tadpole (movie).