---

Related Topics

---

• Do you know that a frog can have more legs if infected with a parasite?
• Parasites can change the structure of their host.
• For example, some trematodes can cause limb malformations in amphibians.
• Researchers examined the relationship between morphological abnormalities in amphibians and the abundance of trematode parasites infection.

• The research covered parts of California, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and Montana.
• Researchers studied malformations at frequencies ranging between 1 to 90 percent in nine amphibian species.
• Researchers discovered that Ribeiroia ondatrae was linked to higher occurrence of amphibian limb malformations.
• The parasite can be found mostly around the basal tissue of the hind limbs in infected frogs.
• The malformations included skin webbings, more limbs and digits, and missing/malformed hind limbs.
• Amphibians without the parasite showed significantly less occurrence of abnormalities.
• The species that exhibited the highest abnormality frequencies include Ambystoma macrodactylum, Hyla regilla, Rana aurora, R. luteiventris, and Taricha torosa.

• Water quality did not show significant relationship with the malformations.
• The snail Planorbella were significant predictors of the presence of Ribeiroia infection.
• The discovery demonstrated that Ribeiroia infection is the cause of amphibian malformations of the limbs in the western United States.

Source:

Johnson, Pieter & Lunde, Kevin & Thurman, Earl & Ritchie, Euan & Wray, Simon & Sutherland, Daniel & Kapfer, Joshua & Frest, Terrence & Bowerman, Jay & Blaustein, Andrew. (2002). Parasite (Ribeiroia ondatrae) Infection Linked to Amphibian Malformations in the Western United States. Ecological Monographs. 72. 151-168. 10.2307/3100022

AI Disclosure Statement:
The Chromoscience uses AI-assisted tools to support the preparation and editing of science articles. Content is reviewed by the editor for clarity and consistency with the cited research before publication. Readers are encouraged to consult the original scientific publications for complete findings, methods, and limitations.