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Abstract
| The past few years, the increased prevalence of deformed frogs in the Wisconsin/
Minnesota area has caught the attention of scientists and environmentalists around the
country. The health of frogs, and other amphibians, in an environment can be used as an
indicator of the health of that environment. The objective of the project was to find out if
the Mississippi River Valley harbored deformed frogs, and if the number of cases identified
was unusually high. The project also looked to find out if Manodistomum syntomentera
might be one causative agent for frog deformities. Frog collections were made
at Goose Island County Park, (La Crosse Co), Van Loon Wildlife Area, (La Crosse Co),
and Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge, (Trempealeau Co). No deformities were
identified in any of 12 green (Rana clamitans) or 35 leopard (R. pipiens) frogs from
Goose Island, eight green frogs and two leopard frogs from Van Loon and 44 leopard
frogs and 58 green frogs from Trempealeau. Three of 58 (5.17%) green frogs from
Trempealeau were deformed. Deformities included missing digits, extra digits, missing
extremities, and misshapen leg bones. No supernumerary limbed frogs were found. We
necropsied 76 frogs, ( 45 R. pipiens and 31 R. clamitans ) and obtained numerous parasites
from the frogs, including: Halipegus (Eustachian tubes), Haematoloechus (rectum),
Rhabdias (lungs), Ozwaldocruzia (intestine), Glypthelmins (intestine), Megalodiscus
(rectum), opalinids (rectum), and gorgoderids (urinary bladder). Blood smears have yet
to be stained. Metacercariae recovered include: Manodistomum (subdermal), neascus
(subdermal) diplostomula (muscles), heterophyid (unencysted along femurs), and echinostome
(kidney). These data indicate that M. syntomentera is not likely the causative
agent of deformities in R pipiens and R. clamitans. |
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