Examination for Parasites: Basic Procedures

Abstract

Frogs act as hosts to all the major groups of animal parasites—Protozoa, Trematoda, Cestoda, Acanthocephala and Nematoda—and provide a rich parasite fauna for laboratory study and experimentation. The life cycles and general ecology of these parasites will clearly be closely correlated with that of the host, so that to understand the frog as an integrated host-parasite system, knowledge of the biology and ecology of the frog is essential. For notes on the biology of the three species considered here, namely Rana temporaria, R. esculenta and R. pipiens, see Chapter 7. If the frogs used for investigation have not been collected directly from the field, it is essential to be assured by the supplier that they have been collected recently from their natural habitat. Frogs kept in captivity often do not feed readily and quickly lose some of their parasite burden. Those actually bred in captivity are generally free from parasites, not having been exposed to natural infection.