Laboratory Activity No.

7: External Anatomy and Skeletal System of a Frog

A. External Anatomy of a Frog

The body of an animal has a definite form and is composed of various structural parts.
These enable the animal to carry out the activities necessary for life, the physiological processes
within the body, and the external relationships with its environment. The Frog is a convenient
representative animal for an introductory subject because of its cheap and abundant supply and
size. The life cycle can be observed easily, and it shows resemblance in form and structures to
higher vertebrates and man. The details of its structures readily demonstrated, and its life habits
are easily observed

Figure 1. External Anatomy of a Frog

Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Ranidae
Genus: Rana
Field frog: Rana vittegera
Bullfrog: Rana catesbeina
 The Frog body is divided into two major parts- the axial region composed of the head and
the trunk and the appendicular region composed of the appendages or the limbs.
The following are the essential parts of the external anatomy of the Frog.
- The snout is a triangular protruding region of the head.
- The mouth is a large anterior opening of the head of the Frog with teeth and tongue.
- The two eyes are found on the sides of the head. The eyes have an upper eyelid, lower
eyelid, and the 3rd eyelid called the nictitating membrane.
- The nostrils or external nares are two small openings near the tip of the snout.
- The tympanic membrane is a small round arc of thickened membrane behind each eye
that is used for hearing.
- The brow spot is a lightly colored spot at the head's median dorsal part in front of the
eyes.
- The hump is a marked elevation on the mid-dorsal surface of the trunk near the posterior
end.
- The anus is a small opening at the trunk's dorsal end, which serves to exit reproductive
cells, excretory products, and undigested food matter.
- There are two forelimbs on the trunk's anterior end consisting of the upper arm, forearm,
wrist, manus, or hand with four digits or fingers.
- The two hindlimbs on the trunk's posterior end consist of thigh, shank or middle portion,
ankles, webbed toes, a sixth toe, and the prehallux is felt on the inner side of the foot near
the most proximal toe, the hallux.

B. Skeletal System of a Frog

The skeleton is an essential part of the body machine of every vertebrate animal. It has at
least three essential functions- serves as a framework or support for the softer parts of the body,
provides a firm surface for the attachment of the muscle used in movements and locomotion, and
protects soft parts. It also supplies calcium to the blood cells.
Based on the body's location, the vertebrates' endoskeleton is divided into an axial and
appendicular skeleton. The axial skeleton supports the head and the trunk. It is made up of the
skull, the visceral skeleton, the vertebral column, ribs (absent in frogs), and the sternum. The
appendicular skeleton comprises pectoral and pelvic girdles, forelimbs' bones, and the hindlimbs.

Skull (Dorsal Side)

- The premaxillae are the most anterior pair of teeth bearing bones that form the upper
jaw's tip.
- The maxillae are pair of teeth bearing bones posterior to the premaxillae. They form the
most extensive and middle segment of the upper jaw.
- The quadratojugals are a pair of slender bones forming most of the skull's roof and united
at the sagittal suture's median line.
- The frontoparietal is a pair of slender bones forming most of the skull's roof and united
at the sagittal suture's median line.
- The spenethmoid is a small squarish bone anterior to the fronto-parietals.
- The nasals are a pair of triangular bones anterior to the spenethmoid covering the nasal
capsules.
 - The prootics are a pair of ring-like projection on each side of the skull posterior to the
fronto-parietals forming the auditory capsule enclosing the inner ear. The anterior wall
has perforation for the passage of the cranial nerves.
- The squamosals are a pair of T-shaped bones lateral to the prootic, whose longer ends
extend outward and backward to the lower jaw.
- The occipitals are short bones surrounding a large opening, the foramen magnum at the
skull's posterior boundary.
- The occipital condyles are round prominence on each exoccipital bones.

Skull (Ventral Side)

- The parasphenoid is a dagger-shaped bone that forms the floor of the skull.
- The spenethmoid is a bone at the parasphenoid's anterior end, as seen on the dorsal side.
- The vomerine are two flat wing-shaped and teeth-bearing bones just posterior to the
premaxillae.
- The palatine is a pair of slender, rod-like bone extending laterally from the anterior end of
the spenethmoid to the maxillae.
- The pterygoid is pair of three rayed bones joined to the prootics, squamosals, and
maxillae.

The Lower Jaw

The lower jaw may be divided into the left, and right halve. Each half contains the
following lobes seen from the dorsal side.
- The meto-meckelian is the anterior bone that unites the right and left halves of the jaw.
- The dentary is the middle bone.
- The Angulo-splenial is the posterior bone.

The Hyoid Cartilage

The hyoid cartilage is a thin, flat hyaline cartilage embedded beneath the tongue.
- The body is the large central portion of the hyoid.
- The alary processes are a pair of expanded plates at the anterior end of the body.
- The anterior cornua are the anterior pair of horns extending to the prootics.
- The thyroid processes are a pair of ossified extension of the body, which helps support
the larynx.
- The posterior cornua are a pair of shorter horns lateral to the thyroids process.

The Vertebral Column

The vertebral column consists of ten bones, the vertebrae.
- The atlas is the first vertebra and the vertebral column's most anterior bone without a
transverse process. It articulates with the occipital condyles of the skull.
- The typical vertebras are the second to the eight vertebrae. The parts of the typical
vertebra are as follows:
- The centrum is a ventral spoon-like base or body, which is concave anteriorly and
convex posteriorly.
- The neural arch is a pair of dorsolateral projections on the centrum and is fused mid-
dorsally. The small openings between adjacent neural arches through which spinal nerves
connect with the spinal cord are called intervertebral foramina.
 - The neural canal is the cavity enclosed by the neural arch.
- The neural spine is a caudally directed projection on the mid-dorsal part of the neural
arch.
- The transverse processes are a pair of long processes that extend at the right angles of
the centrum.
- The prezygapophysis is a pair of articulating processes at the anterior end of the neural
arch.
- The postzygapophysis is a pair of articulating processes at the posterior end of the neural
arch.
- The sacral vertebra is the ninth vertebra with two long transverse processes extending
backward and articulating with the pelvic girdle.
- The urostyle is the tenth terminal vertebra and is slender with dorsal keel articulating
anteriorly with the sacral vertebra.

The Sternum
- The sternum is the breast bone and is divided by the pectoral girdle into anterior and
posterior portions.
- The omosternum is a tapered bone attached anteriorly to the epicoracoid.
- The episternum is a flat, slightly circular cartilage at the anterior part of the omosternum.
- The mesosternum is a bony rod. It is the posterior counterpart of the omosternum
correspondingly connected to the epicoracoid.

The Pectoral Girdle

- The pectoral girdle forms an arch of bones and cartilage around the trunk's anterior
portion with the sternum. It is divided into right and left half.
- The suprascapula is a distal, flat, expanded cartilage forming the dorsal portion of the
girdle.
- The scapula is a smaller piece of bone articulating with the suprascapula. The clavicle or
collar bone is a slender bone anteromedial to the scapula.
- The coracoid is bone flared at the median end, posteromedial to the scapula. The opening
that separates the clavicle and the coracoid is the fenestra. The posterior cup-shaped
cavity between the coracoid and scapula receives the humerus' head, the glenoid fossa.
- The epicoracoid is cartilage at the clavicle's proximal end and the coracoid and joins the
halves of the pectoral girdle ventrally.

The Pelvic Girdle

- The pelvic girdle is a V-shaped bone, which articulates with the sacral vertebra and
supports the posterior limbs. It has a left and right half, and each half consists of the
following bones:
- The ilium is an anterior, slender bone articulating with the transverse process of the
sacral vertebra.
- The ischium is a short posterior bone of the dorsal side of the girdle.
- The pubis is triangular cartilage on the ventral side of the girdle.
- The cup-like depression formed by the union of the three pairs of bone and which
receives the femur's head is called the acetabulum. The union areas to each pair of these
boxes are known as iliac, ischium, and pubic symphysis.
The Anterior Limb
The different bones of the forelimb or anterior limbs are the following:
- The humerus is the bone of the upper arm. Head fits the glenoid fossa of the pectoral
girdle.
- The radio-ulna is the bone of the forearm.
- The carpals are the bone of the wrist consisting of two rows of six small bones.
- The metacarpals are bones of the palm consisting of four slender bones and a rudiment
of the thumb.
- The phalanges are the bones of the fingers consisting of small pieces of bones arranged
linearly.

The Posterior Limb

The following are the bones of the posterior limbs or hindlimbs.
- The femur is the bone of the thigh and the largest bone in the body. Its head fits into the
acetabulum of the pelvic girdle.
- The tibia-fibula is the bone of the shank posterior to the femur.
- The tarsals are the bones of the ankle consisting of two rows of bones posterior to the
tibia-fibula. The outer calcaneum and the inner astragalus with an oval space between
them compromise the proximal row. The small bones comprise the distal row.
- The metatarsals are five long cylindrical bones of the sole articulating with the posterior
limb to the tarsals.
- The phalanges are bones of the foot consisting of small pieces that are arranged linearly
posterior to the metatarsal.
- The calcar is a rudimentary bone that supports the prehallux.
 Figure 2. Dorsal view of Frog’s skeletal system
Learning Objectives: At the end of this activity, I can:
1. enumerate the external parts of the Frog;
2. acquaint with the different bones of the Frog; and
3. be able to locate the different parts of the bones.

Instruction:
1. Anesthetize the Frog by pithing. Pithing can be done by inserting a needle or pin in the
Frog’s brain or spinal cord.
2. Pin the Frog in any material available at home with the same function as a dissecting pan.
Locate the structures of the external frog anatomy. Take a picture of your specimen
showing all the Frog's external parts, as shown in Figure 1.
3. Create your own model of the Frog’s skeletal system and label all the parts in the dorsal
view of the whole structure as well as the dorsal view of the vertebral column, as shown
in Figure 2. Attach the frog bones to the illustration board or any material available at
home.
4. Ensure to have proper documentation of frog pithing, pinning, and making of frog
skeletal system model.
5. Always take pictures of your specimen alone and another picture of the specimen with
you.
6. For activity no. 7 submission, the number of photos allowed is a maximum of four,
following the format below. The deadline for submission is on November 17, 2020, until
6:00 PM.
Name: Maricris Guillermo Date: November 17, 2020
Course/Year/Section: BSBIO1A Laboratory Teacher: Ma’am Krystel Grace Padilla

Laboratory Activity Sheet No. 7: External Anatomy and Skeletal System of a Frog
A. External Anatomy
1. Documentation of Frog pithing and pinning. Make sure you are included in the pictures.
2. Picture of actual frog specimen with a corresponding label of its external anatomical
parts.
 External naris
snout browspot
Upper eyelid Digits of fingers
Tympanic membrane
Nictating
membrane

wrist
forearm
Upper arm
lower eyelid

Hump

Median dorsal line

thigh

anus

shank

ankle

prehallux

Digits of toe
web

3. Photo of the frog skeletal system model with label

 promaxilla
maxilla
humerus spenethoid
Pronto- orbit
Metacarpals parental

carpals atlas
Radio-ulna
Transverse atlas
suprascapula
process
Typical trunk
vertebra postzygapophysis
Sacral vertebra
2nd to 8th
urostyle vertebrae Neural
ilium spine
calcar Femur Tibio-fibula
astragalus ischium
Sacral vertebra
calcaneum Metetarsals
urostyle
Skeletal System
Dorsal view

Vertebral Column
Dorsal view

Frog Skeletal System Model (Alone)

Frog Skeletal System Model (With you)
4. Why is the skin of the Frog always moist?

The frog’s skin is another way of their breathing, their skin tends to dry out easily that
is why the frog’s skin secretes mucus that makes it moist. It helps in absorbing dissolved
oxygen from the air.

5. How are you going to determine the sex of the Frog by examining its external features
alone?

Females are larger than males, a round disc called tympanum that covers their
ears, in male frogs, it is larger than their eye while in female frogs, they tend to be equal
in size. During the breeding or mating season, males develop gripper pads on their
thumbs and dark throat color.

6. State the functions of the skeletal system.

The skeletal system is comprised of bones, they are the support and structure of
an organism’s body. It allows movement, blood cell formation, stores minerals and
protects the internal organs.

7. Differentiate the following:

a. toad from a frog

All toads are frog but not all frogs are toads, toads have shorter legs and bumpy or
bulky skin that tends to dry. On the other hand, frogs have moist and slimy, soft skin.
Toads were often seen in the garden or yards while frogs can be seen near water.

b. endoskeleton from exoskeleton and give examples

Endoskeleton is inside the body such as bones and cartilage, they are developed
from the endoderm. Examples of species that have endoskeleton are vertebrates such as
humans, birds and mammals. Exoskeleton is the external skeleton that protects the outer
body of an organism, they are mainly found in insects, centipedes, crabs and spiders.

c. typical and atypical vertebral

Typical vertebral are located at the thoracic or lumbar spine, they are often
multiple while atypical vertebral are often solitary. Typical vertebral is part of the
vertebral body while the atypical is the entire vertebral body and highly modified by
function and position.