The Role of Substrate Moisture and Dew in the Water Economy of Leopard Frogs, Rana pipiens

Copeia ◽  
1967 ◽  
Vol 1967 (1) ◽  
pp. 141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim W. Dole
Keyword(s):  
Rana Pipiens ◽  
Leopard Frogs ◽  
Water Economy ◽  
Substrate Moisture

Discontinuous Shock and Discriminated-Avoidance Learning by Tadpoles (Rana Pipiens)

1973 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
William J. Hoyer
Keyword(s):  
Avoidance Response ◽  
Factorial Design ◽  
Conditional Stimulus ◽  
Avoidance Learning ◽  
Rana Pipiens ◽  
Unconditional Stimulus ◽  
Leopard Frogs ◽  
Avoidance Situation ◽  
Discontinuous Shock

20 larval leopard frogs ( Rana pipiens) were given 40 trials per day for 5 consecutive days in a discriminated-avoidance situation. Light was used as the conditional stimulus (CS), and the unconditional stimulus (US) consisted of scrambled electric current. Ss were matched for size and assigned to 4 cells of a 2 by 2 factorial design. The factors were US intensity (0.4 ma vs 0.8 ma) and type of US (discontinuous vs continuous). Over sessions there was an increase in the number of avoidance responses ( p < .005) and a corresponding decrease in the number of no-response trials ( p < .05). Discontinuous shock, which facilitates discriminated-avoidance learning in tats, did not affect the level of avoidance responding in tadpoles but did significantly reduce the number of no-response trials ( p < .01). This finding suggested that the role of the discontinuous shock in discriminated-avoidance learning may be adventitiously to eliminate responses (e.g., freezing) which are incompatible with the avoidance response.

scholarly journals INDUCTION OF METASTASIS OF FROG CARCINOMA BY INCREASE OF ENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERATURE

1949 ◽  
Vol 89 (3) ◽  
pp. 269-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Balduin Lucké ◽  
Hans Schlumberger
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Culture ◽  
Elevated Temperature ◽  
Constant Temperature ◽  
Rana Pipiens ◽  
Environmental Temperature ◽  
Kidney Tumors ◽  
Primary Tumors ◽  
Metastatic Dissemination ◽  
Leopard Frogs ◽  
Tumor Bearing

Metastasis of the kidney carcinoma of leopard frogs (Rana pipiens) has been induced by exposing tumor-bearing animals for approximately 50 days to a constant temperature of 28°C. Under these conditions 54 per cent of the frogs developed secondary growths, whereas in groups kept at 18° or at 7° metastatic dissemination was found in only 6 per cent. Moreover, at the elevated temperature the metastases were usually more numerous and more widely disseminated; they were also fairly uniform in size, suggesting that they had developed at nearly the same time. Dissemination of the kidney tumors was influenced by the nutritional state of the frogs, occurring more readily in well nourished than in poorly nourished animals. Periodic Roentgen ray examinations showed that the size of the primary tumors was not significantly or uniformly affected during the course of the experiments. No correlation was found between change in size of the kidney tumors and the incidence of their metastasis. Although the mechanism by which temperature induces metastasis of frog carcinoma cannot as yet be elucidated, previous experiments with this tumor indicate that certain factors at least may be involved: Elevation of temperature has been found to cause more ready detachment of cells of frog carcinoma in tissue culture; to bring about increased velocity of locomotion of the detached cells; to lead more promptly and efficiently to vascularization of transplants; and to effect their greater invasiveness.

Pressure cycles and the water economy of insects

1988 ◽  
Vol 318 (1190) ◽  
pp. 377-407 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Body Temperature ◽  
Water Exchange ◽  
Vapour Phase ◽  
The Body ◽  
Tracheal System ◽  
Water Economy ◽  
Insect Wings ◽  
Pressure Cycle ◽  
Respiratory Gases

Water exchange between insects and their environment via the vapour phase includes influx and efflux components. The pressure cycle theory postulates that insects (and some other arthropods) can regulate the relative rates of influx and efflux of water vapour by modulating hydrostatic pressures at a vapour-liquid interface by compressing or expanding a sealed, gas-filled cavity. Some such cavities, like the tracheal system, could be compressed by elevated pressure in all or part of the haemocoele. Others, perhaps including the muscular rectum of flea prepupae, could be compressed by intrinsic muscles. Maddrell Insect Physiol . 8, 199 (1971)) suggested a pressure cycle mechanism of this kind to account for rectal uptake of water vapour in Thermobia but did not find it compatible with quantitative information then available. Newer evidence conforms better with the proposed mechanism. Cyclical pressure changes are of widespread occurrence in insects and have sometimes been shown to depend on water status. Evidence is reviewed for the role of the tracheal system as an avenue for net exchange of water between the insect and its environment. Because water and respiratory gases share common pathways, most published findings fail to distinguish between the conventional view that the tracheal system has evolved as a site for distribution and exchange of respiratory gases and that any water exchange occurring in it is generally incidental and nonadaptive, and the theory proposed here. The pressure cycle theory offers a supplementary explanation not incompatible with evidence so far available. The relative importance of water economy and respiratory exchange in the functioning of compressible cavities such as the tracheal system remains to be explored. Some further implications of the pressure cycle theory are discussed. Consideration is given to the possible involvement of vapour-phase transport in the internal redistribution of water within the body. It is suggested that some insect wings may constitute internal vapour-liquid exchange sites, where water can move from the body fluids to the intratracheal gas. Ambient and body temperature must influence rates of vapour-liquid mass transfer. If elevated body temperature promotes evaporative discharge of the metabolic water burden that has been shown to accumulate during flight in some large insects, their minimum threshold thoracic temperature for sustained flight may relate to the maintenance of water balance. The role of water economy in the early evolution of insect wings is considered. Pressure cycles might help to maintain water balance in surface-breathing insects living in fresh and saline waters, but the turbulence of the surface of the open sea might prevent truly marine forms from using this mechanism.

The role of temperature in microhabitat selection by northern water snakes (Nerodia sipedon)

1992 ◽  
Vol 70 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian C. Robertson ◽  
Patrick J. Weatherhead
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Manipulation ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Microhabitat Selection ◽  
Nerodia Sipedon ◽  
Leopard Frogs ◽  
Water Snake ◽  
Northern Water Snakes ◽  
Water Snakes ◽  
Circadian Patterns

Using field observations and laboratory experiments we examined the role of temperature in microhabitat selection by an eastern Ontario population of northern water snakes (Nerodia sipedon). From 1349 random transects through a marsh we found that basking activity peaked at 09:00 and then declined steadily until 14:00 before increasing again. Our ability to detect snakes depended upon the microhabitat they occupied, and to the time of day when the snakes were encountered in water. In the field, temperatures of basking snakes averaged (±SE) 26.3 ± 0.7 °C (n = 36), while captive snakes in a thermal gradient showed a narrower selectivity, averaging 27.7 ± 0.4 °C (n = 21). The temperatures of basking snakes never exceeded 33 °C, even though a model snake placed in the sun reached 48 °C, suggesting that the snakes were thermoregulating to prevent overheating. In both the field and enclosures, water snakes basked more frequently as the temperature of the air increased relative to the water. Experimental manipulation of water temperature relative to air temperature revealed that temperature influenced microhabitat selection independently of circadian patterns. Finally, when in water, snakes tended to frequent habitats where leopard frogs (Rana pipiens), a common prey species, were most abundant, suggesting that prey distribution may also be an important component of water snake habitat selection.

Development and Survivorship of Northern Leopard Frogs (Rana pipiens) and Green Frogs (Rana clamitans) Exposed to Contaminants in the Water and Sediments of the St. Lawrence River near Cornwall, Ontario

2004 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 160-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tana V. McDaniel ◽  
Megan L. Harris ◽  
Christine A. Bishop ◽  
John Struger
Keyword(s):  
Rana Pipiens ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Sediment Quality ◽  
Leopard Frog ◽  
Reference Sites ◽  
Aquatic Life ◽  
Leopard Frogs ◽  
Water And Sediment ◽  
Northern Leopard Frogs ◽  
St Lawrence River

Abstract High levels of contamination in the aquatic environment and wildlife within the Ontario portion of the St. Lawrence River at the Cornwall Area of Concern (AOC) have raised questions about potential impacts on wildlife health. Northern leopard frog embryos were raised in two wetland sites within the AOC and at two reference sites to assess differences in water and sediment quality on survivorship and deformity rates. Chlorinated hydrocarbons (total polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine pesticides), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, nutrients and heavy metals were measured in sediment and/or water from the study sites. Levels of some metals such as aluminium, cadmium, chromium and copper, exceeded federal and provincial guidelines for the protection of aquatic life, especially in the two AOC wetlands. Early stage tadpole survivorship was significantly lower and deformity frequency significantly higher at wetlands within the AOC; however, differences were likely not biologically significant. Survivorship and deformity rates of leopard frogs (Rana pipiens) at metamorphosis did not differ significantly among sites. Onset of metamorphosis was accelerated in tadpoles raised in wetlands within the AOC. Tadpoles raised in wetlands within the St. Lawrence River AOC took significantly less time to complete metamorphosis (53–55 days) than did tadpoles raised at reference sites (61–64 days). The phenology of metamorphosis was also more synchronous in tadpoles raised in the AOC, with all tadpoles reaching metamorphosis within a space of 3 to 7 days, as compared to 9 to 12 days at reference wetlands; these differences could not be accounted for by water temperature. Differences in development and survivorship rates between AOC and reference sites may be related to contaminant concentrations in water and sediment. However, no strong evidence for beneficial use impairment in terms of reproductive impairments or elevated deformity rates were seen from caged leopard frogs in the two AOC wetlands.

Static Pressure-Volume Curves for the Lung of the Frog (Rana Pipiens)

1978 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
pp. 149-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. M. HUGHES ◽  
G. A. VERGARA
Keyword(s):  
Volume Change ◽  
Rana Pipiens ◽  
Static Pressure ◽  
Large Diameter ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Isolated Lungs ◽  
Precise Role ◽  
Different Parts

1. Static pressure/volume curves have been determined for isolated frog lungs inflated with either air or saline. In both cases a hysteresis was present: the pressure required to produce unit change of volume being greater during inflation than deflation. 2. The pressure necessary for a given volume change was less for the saline-filled than the air-filled lungs. The difference between these curves is due to the surface tension at the air/lung interface. 3. Pressure/volume curves for air-filled lungs in situ were similar to curves for isolated lungs. However, a greater pressure was required for the same volume change during both inflation and deflation. 4. Compliance was calculated from different parts of air pressure/volume curves and gave values greater than those obtained using similar calculations for higher vertebrates. 5. These observations support other evidence for the presence of a surfactant in the lung lining of frogs in spite of the relatively large diameter of their ‘alveoli.’ The precise role of such a lining is uncertain and it is concluded that similar forces may be involved during the inflation and deflation of lungs of frogs and higher vertebrates in spite of differences in gross morphology.

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