Eye-Lens Weight of the Bullfrog (Rana Catesbeiana) Related to Larval Development, Transformation, and Age of Adults
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Date
1974-09
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Abstract
Eye-lens growth in larval, transforming, and adult bullfrogs was recorded, and the use of the lens-weight to age adults was examined. Over 500 animals in different developmental stages were captured from ponds in Wood County, Ohio. Using standard techniques, the lenses were removed, fixed, dried, and weighed. The animals also were weighed, measured, and internally sexed. Lens-weight in conjunction with developmental stage allowed separation of cohort populations (those animals from different spawning periods). Adults collected immediately after spring emergence, whose age had been estimated by the pterygoid-bone-ageing method, could be separated into annual classes. The eye-lens weight increased with age, although the rate of increase varied with the developmental stage of the animal. Mean lens-weights were significantly different for each developmental stage in the bullfrog life history, yet considerable overlap and individual variation occurred. The eye-lens growth of poorly-fed laboratory animals continued at a rate similar to that of animals in the wild.
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Author Institution: Department of Biology, Bowling Green State University
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Citation
The Ohio Journal of Science. v74, n5 (September, 1974), 282-286