Name: _______________________________

General Biology 2

LABORATORY MANUAL on DISSECTION OF FROG

Objectives:
At the end of the laboratory activity, students are able to:
1. To become acquainted with the external anatomy of the frog
2. To become acquainted with the internal anatomy of the frog
3. To locate the structures, organs and systems of the frog
4. To assess the function of structures from observing the actual anatomy of the organism.
5. To learn and practice dissection technique.

Important SAFETY INFORMATION:

1. While dissecting, be respectful of your lab partners and of the specimen you are about to
explore, observe and learn from

2. Long hair is to be pulled back and not hanging down. Put on apron/lab gown if you desire
and ALWAYS wear a pair of gloves.

3. Take extra care with your dissection tools. Scissors and scalpels will be used with the BEST of
care in order to avoid injury. Your scissors are your most important tool, but be sure to handle
them carefully and always double check instructions before cutting. Important: Whenever
using scissors to cut into a specimen, make sure to keep the tip of the scissors pointed up so as
not to dig down into the specimen, damaging the organs to be viewed.
4. Students are to clean laboratory area as well as hands before and after lab.

5. If you are the person dissecting, then the other person in the pair is assisting. Make sure every
member can have the opportunity in dissecting the specimen. After the dissection is
completed, share your observations so that every member has a completed lab report.
Conclusion questions will be individual work.

If you have any questions, please ask. Failure to follow any of the above rules will result in the
immediate dismissal from the laboratory. I __________________________ understand the above
statement and know the consequences if I fail to follow lab rules.

Signature Date
INTRODUCTION TO DISSECTION:

To successfully follow dissection instructions, it is essential to be familiar with the following

terms:
Dorsal — the back or upper surface of an organism
Ventral — the stomach or lower surface of an organism
Anterior — toward the head end of an organism
Posterior — toward the tail end of an organism
Medial — toward the central longitudinal axis of the body

Lateral — toward the longitudinal line along the sides of the body; away from the central
longitudinal axis

Get to know the names and proper use of each of the following dissection tools:
1. Dissecting Tray – wax is not for graffiti but to hold down the organism.
2. Pin – not for poking but for holding the organism open.
3. Forceps (tweezers) – for holding and identifying parts to see other organs.
4. Dissecting Probe – for exploring and pushing organs aside.
5. Scissors & Scalpel – for cutting. Use scissors for most of your incisions.

I. EXTERNAL ANATOMY OF FROG

Procedure:

1. Place a frog, dorsal side up, in a

dissecting pan. You will be finding and
identifying distinctive structures. Refer to
the diagram of the external structures as
needed.

2. Locate the following structures on

your own specimen and label them on
the picture in question 9 of the
observation section: eyes, nostrils,
tympanic membrane, nictitating
membrane, thumb, foreleg, and
webbed hindleg.

3. Determine if your frog is a male or a

female. The sex of a frog may be
determined externally by examining the thumb pads on the front feet. The thumb pads of
males are enlarged at the base as in the drawing on the right.

4. Carefully examine the legs of the frog: Record the answers to your observations.
a. Measure the length of the foreleg and the hindleg.
b. Measure the length of the whole frog from nose to legs stretched out behind.
c. Count how many digits there are on the foreleg and hindleg.
d. Check to see if the forelegs are webbed. Check to see if the hindlegs are webbed.
e. Locate the thumbs on each foreleg. In males, the thumb is thickened and large.

5. Focus on the head region. Look carefully at the bulging eyes. Notice how they are
situated, to enable the frog to see to the front and to the sides. Also, find the nictitating
membrane — a transparent eyelid that moves from the bottom of the eye to the top. What
is the purpose of this eyelid?
6. The tympanic membrane is a circular membrane located below the eye. What is the
purpose of this membrane?
7. Examine the mouth of the frog. To open the
mouth wide, use the scissors to cut the hinge
joints at both corners of the mouth. Spread the
mouth open. Refer to the diagram of the
mouth to find the following structures:

a. Find the tongue. Locate where it is

attached to the floor of the mouth.

b. Find the glottis, gullet, esophagus,

Eustachian tubes (on the sides of the upper
jaw), vocal sacs (on the sides of the lower jaw),
nostrils (externally and internally) and teeth.
c. The gullet is the opening into the esophagus.

d. Look to see if there are vocal sacs. If not, perhaps your specimen is a female. Only males
have these openings which are used for croaking.

e. Locate the external and internal nostrils. Use a probe from the dissecting kit to stick through
the nostrils from the outside in.

f. Find the two sets of teeth. Rub your finger along the top jaw to feel the maxillary teeth. Find
the vomerine teeth located on the roof of the mouth.

Observations:
1. What is the sex of your frog?
2. Answer the following questions:
a. What is the length of the foreleg? Hindleg?
b. How do they compare and why?
c. What is the length of the frog’s body?
d. What is the ratio of the frog’s hind legs to its body length?
e. How many digits are on the foreleg? Hindleg?
f. Are the forelegs webbed? Are the hindlegs webbed?
3. What is the purpose of the nictitating membrane?
4. What is the function of the tympanic membrane?
5. Why is the tongue attached where it is?
6. Why does the gullet, the opening into the esophagus, have to be so big?
7. Do female frogs croak? Why or why not?
8. What do the maxillary teeth feel like? What do the volmerine teeth feel like?
9. Provide an actual photo of your frog showing its external structures. Label the following:
eyes, nostrils, tympanic membrane, thumb, nictitating membrane, foreleg, hind leg, and
webbed hind foot.

II. SKINNING THE FROG

1. Place your frog on its back in the dissecting tray. With your scissors, make a shallow cut
through the skin just below the jawline. Continue this cut midventrally from the jaw to the
cloacal opening. As you cut through the skin, pull upward and away from the underlying
muscle to assure that you are not cutting too deeply.

2. From this cut make another incision through the skin around the cloacal opening, down the
lateral surface of each limb, around the ankles and wrists, and eyes and tympanum without
damaging them.
3. With your fingers, pull the skin away from the underlying muscle until it is completely
removed. Observe that the skin does not adhere to the muscles but is attached by the
connective tissue bridges called septa. This arrangement results in the presence of a potential
space between the skin and the muscles. In life this space is occupied by a colorless fluid
called lymph. Also observe that there are no fat deposits between the skin and muscle, as
there in mammals.

Observations:

1. What is the significance of having no fat deposits between the skin and muscle for a frog in
cold weather?
2. Is the skin thick or thin?
3. Are there a lot of blood vessels under the skin? Why is this important?

III. MUSCLE DISSECTION

Muscle dissection involves the careful separation of muscles from each other. This is
possible because the fibers of each individual muscle run parallel to each other between
attachments. Individual muscles are visible and therefore separable when adjacent muscles
contain fibers that travel in a different direction.
1. Examine the muscle on your frog closely. Locate the cleavage lines that separate adjacent
muscles while comparing your specimen with the diagram (fig. 3.1 and fig 3.2). Please also
refer to “Frog Muscular System” pdf.
2. If the lines are not visible, gently pull the muscles part with your fingers until the natural areas
of separation appear. Using a blunt probe to break the surrounding tissue, separate the
muscles at the cleavage line by inserting the probe between adjacent muscles and working
the instrument forward. Continue this until the probe tip resurfaces at the opposite cleavage
line of each muscle.

3. You should follow each muscle to its point of origin and insertion as far as is practical. This is
done by inserting the probe through both cleavage lines bordering a muscle and sliding the
probe laterally along the muscle’s fiber. If this step is done with care, the probe will break
through the connective tissue between adjacent muscles without causing any damage.

4. Proceed to separate all muscles on one side of the body in this manner. Use the diagram
provided below and the pdf entitled “Frog Muscular System” s your reference for the muscular
dissection.

5. Prepare for a practical exam on the muscular system of frog. For 1 minute, identify different
muscles as correctly and as many as you can.
IV. INTERNAL STRUCTURE

1. To expose the body cavity, it is necessary to cut away the muscle layer. To do this, repeat
the procedure for cutting away the skin. Make an incision just anterior of the anus and follow
the same cutting pattern. You will find that it will be more difficult to cut along the midline up
to the lower jaw because when you reach the fore legs, you must cut through the sternum
(breastbone).

2. Continue cutting, using the pattern for the skin, until you have cut away the muscle tissue,
exposing the organs. Don’t cut too deeply. It is essential to keep your scissor tips pointing
upward while cutting to avoid damage to the internal organs and insuring that you are only
cutting the muscle layer.

3. If your specimen is a female, when the body cavity is exposed, you may see a mass of black
and white eggs. You will need to remove these carefully in order to locate the other organs.
To remove, lift them up with your fingers and find the place where they are attached. Work
them free by pinching them off from that attachment and pulling them out. (Also note, you
may still have a female specimen even though there are no black and white eggs present.)

4. Once the interior structures are exposed clearly, start to locate the structures of the different
systems of the frog. Refer to the diagram of the internal structures of the frog if necessary. (You
can refer to Frog Visual Dissection Guide pdf provided).

5. Use the diagram below to locate and identify the organs of the digestive system:
esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, cloaca, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas.
6. Again refer to the diagram to identify the parts of the circulatory and respiratory systems
that are in the chest cavity. Find the left atrium, right atrium, and ventricle of the heart. Find
an artery attached to the heart and another artery near the backbone. Find a vein near one
of the shoulders. Find the two lungs.

7. Use a probe and scissors to lift and remove the intestines and liver. Use the diagram on the
next page to identify the parts of the urinary and reproductive systems. Remove the peritoneal
membrane, which is connective tissue that lies on top of the red kidneys. Observe the yellow
fat bodies that are attached to the kidneys. Find the ureters; the urinary bladder; the testes
and sperm ducts in the male; and the ovaries, oviducts, and uteri in the female.

Observations:
1. How many lobes does the liver have?
2. What part does the pancreas and spleen play in digestion?

3. Provide an actual photo/s of the internal structures of your frog with the appropriate labels
as you can: liver, gall bladder, stomach, esophagus, small intestines, large intestines, cloaca,
pancreas, spleen, heart, lungs, kidney, urinary bladder, ovary, and oviduct.
V. SKELETAL SYSTEM

1. Make a 3D model of the skeletal system of frog by assembling the bones of the same frog
you used in the dissection.
2. Label the parts of the skeletal system in your model. Refer to the pdf provided as your guide.

3. Prepare for a practical exam on the skeletal system of frog. For 1 minute, identify different
bones as correctly and as many as you can.

CONGRATULATIONS!
for facing your fears! 