Mapping amphibian disease patterns

Abstract

Over the past two decades the worldwide emergence of the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), which causes chytridiomycosis, has drastically impacted populations of frogs, toads, and salamanders. Currently, as much as 40% of the roughly 6300 known amphibian species are deemed imperiled, and chytridiomycosis is widely considered the worst infectious disease ever recorded among wildlife. However, a novel online knowledge bank that provides real-time surveillance of the pathogen is now giving amphibian conservationists a powerful tool for curtailing this biodiversity crisis.

Citation

Parks, Noreen. 2013. Mapping amphibian disease patterns. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 11(3): p. 117.