Helminth Parasites of the Wood Frog, Lithobates sylvaticus, in Prairie Pothole Wetlands of the Northern Great Plains

Abstract

Parasites are ubiquitous members of biotic communities. Because their persistence and abundance is closely tied to other taxa and numerous environmental factors, information about parasite diversity may provide unique insights into ecosystem health. Parasites may also impact host health and population dynamics. Because they are relatively inconspicuous, however, little is known about parasite diversity and prevalence in specific host species in most geographic regions. We sampled parasites from wood frogs in the ecologically unique Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota, USA. Most frogs were infected with helminths. We found a minimum of 7 species of trematodes, 3 of nematodes, and 1 cestode. Two species had prevalence >50%: the lung nematode Rhabdias bakeri and the trematode Echinoparyphium rubrum. Helminth species richness ranged from 0 to 6 taxa per host, with a median of 2. Total helminth abundance within infected frogs ranged from 1 to 503 worms. Males caught during the spring breeding season were infected with more taxa of helminths than either recent metamorphs or frogs captured later in the summer. The total abundance of helminths was also greater in breeding frogs. These data provide the foundation for further analyses of the ecology of amphibian-parasite interactions on the Northern Plains.