The Big Picture (putting it all together)

[Trinityz1]

Weed killer can turn male frogs into females, study finds
Martin Mittelstaedt

Globe and Mail Update Published on Monday, Mar. 01, 2010 3:00PM EST Last updated on Monday, Mar. 01, 2010 3:20PM EST

Researchers in the United States say they have turned male frogs into females by exposing the amphibians to tiny amounts of atrazine, a weed killer widely used on corn fields in Canada and often found in water supplies in agricultural areas.

The chemically induced sex change occurred by dosing frogs at concentrations of the herbicide 50 per cent below Health Canada's guideline for drinking water.

When the amphibians that had been chemically turned into females copulated with other male frogs that weren't given the herbicide, they laid eggs and all the resulting tadpoles were males.

The discovery that in an experimental setting atrazine induces sex changes in frogs is likely to further increase the controversy over the chemical, which has been banned in Europe because it contaminates ground water but is one of the most commonly used herbicides in North America.

[article continues: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/science/weed-killer-can-turn-male-frogs-into-females-study-finds/article1485580/ ]