Xenopus eyelids

That is such an interesting find. I have a xenopus laevis that has no eyes, she is albino as well (I'm guessing she was a lab project.) She was given to me for free from my local pet store because no one wanted her, and she has turned out to be a very wonderful pet. But do you know what was done to make her like that? I have always been curious to know

Originally Posted by Pippin

That is such an interesting find. I have a xenopus laevis that has no eyes, she is albino as well (I'm guessing she was a lab project.) She was given to me for free from my local pet store because no one wanted her, and she has turned out to be a very wonderful pet. But do you know what was done to make her like that? I have always been curious to know

Most likely your frog was part of a laboratory study or serious injury/disease. Clawed frogs are the model lab subject. In the world of Xenopus, vision is of little use. The eyes are designed to detect prey outside the water - birds, for example. Because the frog is in captivity, there are no predators flying overhead the aquarium - at least I hope not and vision is not needed.

Xenopus has three methods of sensory perception: wave detection using lateral line organs, hearing and chemoreception (smell).

Originally Posted by Angus

hi very one hope all you frogs are all ok.
its been a while since i was last on here, there is so much going on here in Mozambique. we have been attached by heavy rains and a nasty cyclone now heading my way.

Nice to see you back on the forum! Keep safe and I hope that nasty cyclone heads the other way.

Originally Posted by Angus

but anyway since we are having alot of rain. I found three clawed frogs. and they look alot like xenopus muelleri to me because of that tentical like tube underneath their eyes. but... but why i dont think they are xenopus muelleri is because they all have eyelids!!!! which is very strange. my other frogs xenopus muelleri and xenopus laevis do not have elylids. and you know when the xen frog swallows when eating, their eyes sink a bit in their head. yeah! now these frogs i found. their eyes sink in as well when eating BUT their eyelids close.
i wouldent call it eyelids i would say they are like white lenses just like crocs have.
could anyone help me finding out why they are like this.

According to Biology of Xenopus, most species has a lower eye protective membrane, similar to the nictitating membrane found in many animals. In both laevis and muelleri this lower eyelid covers about 3/4ths of the eye. When I first kept Xenopus, people told me the frogs did not have eyelids. After doing some research, they actually do. Learn something new every day

Originally Posted by Angus

but thats not all. the one frog has some sort of groath or fungus and i tryed picking it off but its as if the frog can feel it as if its a part of it. so i left it, it could realy help if i could know what it is as well

I am not sure what the "growth" is. Will let you know if I find something.

ha no predators will ever touch my Noseeum! Shes a great frog I love her despite her eyeless-ness. Shes such an interesting animal, and I was aware of their lateral line organs its such an unique and fascinating adaptation. The only weird part with having an eyeless frog is when my friends come over they run to me to tell me my frog is dead, and then i reassure them she's always been without eyes, gets along fine without them, and prove it by feeding her

we sure do learn something new everyday. thanks for your reply.

Originally Posted by tgampper

The eyes are designed to detect prey outside the water - birds, for example.

This is what happens when you don't proofread your posts - replace prey with predators.

Whilst it's true that wild Xenopus rely largely on aquatic prey, there is some evidence to indicate that they are capable of using vision to capture terrestrial prey as the second page of this paper illustrates: http://john.measey.com/pdf/Measey_feed.pdf

This is the great thing about a forum such as this - - there is always new knowledge that can be gained!

Originally Posted by Geoff

Whilst it's true that wild Xenopus rely largely on aquatic prey, there is some evidence to indicate that they are capable of using vision to capture terrestrial prey as the second page of this paper illustrates: http://john.measey.com/pdf/Measey_feed.pdf

Thanks for the link, Geoff. Very interesting article. John Measey has done a lot of work on the ecology and behavior of Xenopus. It does show us how little we know about a frog that is so popular

There are also several accounts of Xenopus migrating across land from one pond to another. So the idea that they never leave the water is not true.