Name:______Period:_____

Virtual Lab: Virtual Frog Dissection

  • In this exercise, you will be performing a virtual frog dissection. Use the following link to access the dissection:
  • To begin, click on the “Introduction” link on the opening page. Read through and listen to the information presented to learn about the basics of dissection and animal phylogeny. When you are finished, click the “Menu” button at the bottom of the page to return to the opening page of the laboratory activity.
  1. True or False. Body systems in frogs and humans are identical.
  2. Both frogs and humans are members of the Phylum Chordata and the Subphylum Vertebrata, meaning the members of this subphylum contain a ______.
  3. Leopard frogs:
  4. are invertebrates
  5. are warm-blooded
  6. have a gills at one time during their life cycle
  7. all of the above
  1. Rana pipiens, the leopard frog, can be found in marshes, meadows, and ______in Canada and the United States.
  2. What is the bottom portion of a dissecting pan made of? ______
  3. What is used to gently push or lift organs aside during a dissection? ______and ______
  • Once you are back to the opening page, click the “External Anatomy” button. Read through, watch and listen to the information presented in these segments. When you are finished, click the “Menu” button at the bottom of the page to return to the opening page of the laboratory activity.
  1. The dorsal side of the leopard frog:
  1. Is a light, solid color
  2. Ismulti-colored and patterned
  3. Is the same color as the ventral side of the frog
  4. A and C
  1. In regards to the external anatomy of a leopard frog:
  2. It is easy to tell the sex of the animal
  3. The cloaca is at the anterior end of the animal
  4. The feet of the hind limbs have 5 toes
  5. All of the above
  6. Provide the meaning of the following:
  7. Dorsal:______
  8. Ventral:______
  9. Anterior:______
  10. Posterior:______
  11. Head:______
  12. Torso:______
  1. The skin can serve as an organ of ______, as the mucus on the skin of a frog helps keep the frog moist and can aid in the exchange of gases.
  1. What is the function of the tympanic membrane found on the frog? ______
  1. What is the function of the cloaca found on the frog? ______
  • The last portion of this activity involves an examination of the internal anatomy of a frog. To do this, click the “Internal Anatomy” button on the opening page of the laboratory. Read through, watch and listen to all of the information presented in these segments and actively participate where required. You may have to do a virtual cut on the frog by dragging the appropriate tool to the frog or label organs of the dissected frog by dragging the appropriate organ names to the site on the opened frog. Please STOP when you are through with each labeling step and be sure to fill in your final answers on Figures 1 and 2 below.
  1. In the opened mouth of the leopard frog, one can see:
  1. the nostrils
  2. the glottis
  3. the vomerine teeth
  4. A and B
  5. all of the above
  1. List the organs you identified and removed in the order you dissected them:
  2. ______
  3. ______
  4. ______
  5. ______
  6. Which of the following is found in the digestive system of the leopard frog but not in that of a human?
  1. gall bladder
  2. stomach
  3. pancreas
  4. liver
  5. none of the above

Figure 1: Digestive System Organs

  1. True or False. In humans, the skin does participate in gas exchange, much like a frog.
  1. An opening within the mouth called the ______leads to a short tube known as the trachea which connects the mouth to the lungs.
  1. Lungs are where ______moves into the bloodstream, and ______moves out.
  1. ______are the smallest blood vessels; they are microscopic.
  1. Arteries in the circulatory system:
  1. carry blood to the heart
  2. carry blood away from the heart
  3. carry out diffusion of gases
  1. In the leopard frog heart:
  1. the right atrium carries oxygen rich blood
  2. the left atrium carries oxygen poor blood
  3. there are 3 chambers present
  4. there are 4 chambers present
  1. By comparison to the leopard frog heart, the human heart:
  1. has 4 chambers present
  2. carries mixed blood in the ventricles
  3. is more efficient
  4. A and C
  5. all of the above
  1. Fat bodies play a role in:
  1. respiration
  2. circulation
  3. hibernation
  4. reproduction
  5. C and D
  1. Male frogs produce sperm in the ______, while female frogs produce eggs in the ______. Both types of sex cells exit the frogs’ body via the cloaca.
  1. The main organ of the excretory system in both frogs and humans are the ______, which filter waste from blood so it can be excreted from the organism.
  1. The ______temporarily stores liquid waste until it can be excreted from the body of the frog via the cloaca.

Figure 2: Organs of the Circulatory, Respiratory, Excretory and Reproductive Systems

  1. The frogs’ nervous system is made of the brain, sense organs, a ______and a series of nerves. This system communicates messages throughout the animals’ body and controls the frogs’ behavior.
  1. The most anterior portion of the leopard frog brain that control the sense of smell is/are the:
  1. olfactory lobes
  2. cerebrum
  3. optic lobes
  1. Sense organs help a frog detect information from the frogs’ environment and pass that information to the brain. Sense organs include the ______and ______.
  1. Muscles are attached to bones and move them as they shorten, ______, and relax.
  1. Muscles in the upper leg, or thigh, are responsible for moving:
  2. Foot
  3. Calf
  1. Describe the function of the axial and appendicular regions of the skeleton:
  2. axial: ______
  3. appendicular:

______

When you are through opening all of the segments in the “Internal Anatomy” section, you will have successfully completed the dissection. You must also complete the attached Frog Anatomy Coloring WS.

The link below will allow you to study the structures of the frog prior to your practical:

Terms Needed to Identify for Practical:

Name:______Period:_____

  • atria of heart
  • cloaca
  • external nares
  • fat bodies
  • gallbladder
  • internal nares
  • kidney
  • large intestine
  • liver
  • lung
  • pancreas
  • small intestine
  • stomach
  • testes
  • tympanic membrane
  • urinary bladder
  • ventricle of heart
  • vomerine teeth

Name:______Period:_____

Frog Practical Thursday, May 14th!!!