As predators, Amphiumas have large mouths and numerous very sharp teeth. Their diet typically consists of worms, insects, mollusks, crustaceans, small fish, frogs and other small animals. Females are fertilized internally and can deposit up to 200 eggs at a time under large objects or in depressions in the mud, an area they guard until hatching. As tadpoles, Amphiumas are only a few inches long and have gills and all four limbs. When they grow to maturity, however, only the gill slits remain.