The Lake Titicaca frog is endangered due to threats such as water pollution, introduced species, and overharversting for markets, where people consume them as frog juice. This study, conducted June to November 2012, aimed to determinate the bacteria microflora living on the skin of frogs confiscated from the La Parada market, Lima, Peru, and housed individually in the Laboratory of Wildlife at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnic of the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia in Lima, Peru. Samples collected with sterile swabs and cultured on blood, tryptic soy, and MacConkey agars were investigated using commercially available test kits, to investigate the commonly encountered bacterial and potentially zoonotic microorganisms associated with their consumption. We found three species of zoonotic concern in the genus Vibro: Vibrio alginolyticus, Vibro cholerae, and Vibro fluvialis. Other Gram-negative species cultured included two different colonies of Aeromonas hydrophila, or Aeromonas caviae or Aeromonas sobria; Pseudomona luteola; one example of Weeksella virosa or Empedobacter brevis; and Citrobacter freundii. Gram-positive bacteria detected were Staphylococcus spp., Micrococcus spp., and Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae. We recommend against the consumption of this frog due to the pathogens it may carry that could cause serious illness among consumers and in vendors who handle animals.
How to translate text using browser tools
11 October 2021
Cutaneous Bacteria of Confiscated Telmatobius culeus in Lima, Peru
Steve Edery,
Roberto Elias,
Carlos Shiva,
Thomas Weaver,
Richard Reading
ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE
![](/ContentImages/journals/jwdi/57/4/4/WebImages/140.057.0400.cover.jpg)
Journal of Wildlife Diseases
Vol. 57 • No. 4
October 2021
Vol. 57 • No. 4
October 2021
bacteria
frog's juice
Lake Titicaca frog
skin
Telmatobius culeus