Large intestine bacterial flora of nonhibernating and hibernating leopard frogs (Rana pipiens)

Abstract

The bacteria in the large intestines of 10 northern leopard frogs (Rana pipiens) were enumerated and partially characterized. Four nonhibernating frogs were collected in the summer, four hibernating frogs were collected in the winter, and two frogs just emerged from hibernation were collected in the spring. All frogs had about 10(10) bacteria per g (wet weight) of intestinal contents and about 10(9) bacteria per g (wet weight) of mucosal scraping, although the counts from the winter frogs were slightly less than those from the other two groups of frogs. Another group of 14 summer frogs, after treatment to induce hibernation, showed a drop in bacterial counts accompanied by a change in the composition of the flora. In most frogs, Bacteroides was the dominant organism. Other bacteria repeatedly isolated at high dilutions were strict anaerobes, including butyrigenic and acetogenic helically coiled bacteria; fusobacteria; and acetogenic, small, gram-positive bacilli. These data indicate that the intestinal flora of frogs is similar to that of mammals and birds and that this flora can be maintained at temperatures close to freezing.