Ossification patterns of the skeleton in the larvae of the common European toad Bufo bufo
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14720/abs.60.1.15670Keywords:
skeleton, ossification, Bufo bufo, clearing and staining method for skeletonAbstract
We used a clearing and staining method for cartilage and bone to analyse the pattern of ossification in the skeleton of the common European toad, Bufo bufo, a species with rapid larval development. We focused on the ossification of vertebrae, pectoral and pelvic girdles, and limbs with an emphasis of the ossification in their distal parts. We found that the cartilage primordia of the skeleton were formed by the end of premetamorphosis (Stage 34). The first ossifications appeared in early prometamorphosis (Stage 39) and occurred concurrently in the neural arches, diaphyses of proximal elements of front and hind limbs, and in the proximal part of the ileum. The pectoral girdle was still completely cartilaginous at this stage. Ossification intensifies during prometamorphosis and gradualy progresses in a cranial - caudal direction along the spine and from proximal to distal parts of the skeleton, as well as to the epiphyses of the long bones. Fingers ossified in a posterio-anterior direction according to the main limb axis. As in most other anurans, the skeleton of Bufo is almost completely ossified by the end of the metamorphic climax (Stage 46). At this time, cartilage remains in the dorsal midline of the spine, in the distal parts of transverse processes of the vertebrae, the caudal part of the post-sacral region, as well as in the epiphyses, and carpals and metacarpals of the limbs, and in the suprascapula and the pubis of the girdles. These results show a conserved pattern of ossification in B. bufo common to other anurans despite its rapid rate of larval development.
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