REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM IN FROG
Reproductive system is meant for the production of sex cells (sperms or eggs) and transporting the
same through certain ducts to outside. The sexes are separate. The male and female can be
distinguished by their external features. This phenomenon is known as sexual dimorphism.
The vocal sacs are present only in male, and during the breeding season, a nuptial pad is developed at
the base of the first finger of the male frog. The vocal sacs increase the pitch of the sound, while the
nuptial pads help in grasping the female during amplexus. As already mentioned in the excretory
system, the two systems (excretory and reproductive) are closely associated with each other and form
urinogenital system.
Male Reproductive System:
It comprises the following parts:
1. Testes:
These are two, oval yellow coloured structures. Each is lying attached on the outer side of the anterior
most part of each kidney on the ventral side. With the help of a thin peritoneum, the mesorchium,
each testis remains attached with the dorsal wall of the abdomen and kidney. Testis is composed of a
large number of small tubes, the seminiferous tubules, which look rounded in section.
The wall of the seminiferous tubules is made up of germinal epithelium, which forms sperms by
spermatogenesis. The space between the seminiferous tubules is filled with the connective tissue,
blood capillaries, nerve fibres and interstitial cells. The interstitial cells secrete a male sex hormone,
which produces the secondary sexual characters in male viz., nuptial pads during breeding season, etc.
There are present some finger like outgrowths, yellowish in colour attached to the anterior end of each
testis which are collectively known as fat-body. The fat bodies store the food material specially for
hibernation period. They increase in size during summer.
2. Vasa efferentia:
There are 10-12 very fine tubes connecting the testes to kidneys on each side. The vasa efferentia run
transversely through the mesorchium. They open into the anterior part of Bidder’s canal.
The sperms produced by the germinal epithelium of seminiferous tubules are passed into Bidder’s
canal via vasa efferentia and thence carried to the transverse collecting tubules and then to the
urinogenital duct via longitudinal collecting tubule.
3. Urinogenital ducts:
Each kidney gives rise to a muscular urinogenital duct at its outer border, which carries urine as well
as sperms. Each urinogenital duct runs posteriorly, and before opening into cloaca, it dilates to form a
seminal vesicle to store the sperms temporarily. In some frogs the seminal vesicles are not found.
4. Cloaca:
It is a common chamber for receiving faecal matter, urine and sperms. All these products are passed
out through cloacal aperture. Copulatory organ present in higher animals, is absent in frog. During
amplexus, the male frog sheds his sperms on the female’s ova. It happens in the surrounding water
where external fertilization takes place.
Germinal epitheliums of seminiferous tubules produce sperms which are transferred to the Bidder’s
canal via vasa efferentia. From the Bidder’s canal, the sperms are carried to the transverse collecting
tubules, longitudinal collecting tubule and then to the urinogenital duct.
The latter carries the sperms to the seminal vesicle where they are stored temporarily. From the
seminal vesicles, the sperms are transferred to the cloaca and then they are shed into water through
cloacal aperture. Male frog sheds its sperms on the female’s ova during amplexus.
Female Reproductive System:
The female reproductive system comprises the following parts:
1. Ovaries:
These irregular shaped, lobulated structures, occupying the same position as the testes in male frog.
The ovaries are attached to the dorsal wall of abdomen, and kidneys with the help of thin membrane,
known as mesovarium. The ovaries have no internal connections with the kidneys. During the
breeding season, the wall of the ovary ruptures to release the ova into the coelom.
2. Oviducts:
These are paired, white, glandular, long, coiled tubes lying one on either side of the body cavity. Each
oviduct consists of ovarian funnel, ovarian tubule and ovisac.
By the rupturing of the ovary wall, the ova are released into body cavity and reach the ovarian funnels,
through ostia, where they find their way to the ovarian tubule, from where they pass to the ovisac,
cloaca and then outside.
This all happens due to the pressure exerted by the fore-limbs of male on the body of the female frog
during amplexus (the clasping of the female frog by the male frog before discharging sexual products
in water is called amplexus, and by the beating of cilia present in the internal epithelial lining of the
oviduct.
A mature female frog can lay 2500 to 3000 ova at a time fertilization is external. Development is
indirect involving a larval stage called tadpole.