Transplantation of gorgoderine trematodes into challenging habitats

Abstract

Adult bladder flukes of frogs, Gorgodera amplicava from Rana catesbeiana and Gorgoderina attenuata from R. pipiens, died within 24–36 hours after implantation into intact, functional recta of recipient leopard frogs, Rana pipiens. Specimens of the same species of flukes implanted into small intestinal fistulas produced by surgery, and into cleansed recta after the latter had been surgically disjoined from the ileum, also failed to survive for longer than 24–48 hours. Bladder flukes appeared normal in behavior for two days post-implantation, and survived a maximum of 4 days, in anuran recta whose anterior ends were surgically opened to the flank and whose lumina were carefully flushed with artificial frog-bladder-urine. Frog-bladder-flukes placed into the accessory urinary bladders of female painted turtles, Chrysemys p. picta, succumbed within 24 hours; others implanted into the true urinary bladder were normal after 7–10 days. Completely normal frog-bladder-flukes were also recovered from newts, Triturus v. viridescens, after an intravesical existence of 48 hours. Much longer survivals in bladders of turtles and newts, both naturally non-infective with these species of flukes, is considered possible. These facts suggest a type of natural resistance in non-infective hosts against excystation or post-metacercarial migration of juveniles which does not operate against adult flukes artificially implanted into the urinary bladder.