Amphibians in six continents, Africa, South America,
Central America, North America, Europe, Australia, and Oceania have been
reported as infected by the amphibian chytrid. The earliest record is from North
America in Rana pipiens collected in 1974.
Currently a total of 2 amphibian orders (Anura and Caudata), 14 families and
93 species have been diagnosed infected with Batrachochytrium
dendrobatidis. Australia has the most species infected (46) of any country.
All of the records from Germany, except for a report in one species in the wild,
are in imported amphibians or amphibians in the pet trade, illustrating the
importance of the global movement of amphibians in disseminating
chytridiomycosis.
Australian specimens were submitted mainly to the Amphibian Diseases Network,
and the diagnoses were made by Lee Berger, Rick Speare, Diana Mendez, Ken Aplin
and Peter Kirkpatrick. Records from outside Australia are from the literature
where indicated or from individual scientists who have submitted reports.
The most extensive records are from Australia and a link connects to a
separate file. Additional links connect to web sites in Ecuador, New Zealand,
Spain and USA.
Last updated: 14 April 2004.
If you are aware of new records, please contact Rick Speare and this file will be
updated. Verification of the report may be requested as we wish records to be
accurate.
Kenya
| Ranidae | |||
| Ptychadena anchietae (Rana angolensis) | Langata, Nairobi | 1998-99 | Berger & Parker |
South Africa
| Pipidae | |||
| Xenopus laevis | Grabouw Bredasor Hex River Knysna |
Jul
1999 15 Jul 1999 17 Jul 1999 23 Aug 1999 |
Mendez, Speare & Cunningham |
Western Africa
| Pipidae | |||
| Xenopus tropicalis | imported into USA from "western Africa" and died in quarantine from chlamydiosis 4 months after arrival | 1998 | Reed et al 2000 |
AMERICA
Costa Rica
| Bufonidae | |||
| Atelopus varius | Rivas, San Isidro del General, central southern part of Costa Rica | March 1992 | Puschendorf and Berger |
Mexico
| Ranidae | |||
| Rana tarahumarae | Mexico | 1982, 1985 | Rollins-Smith
et al 2002 |
Panama
| Bufonidae | |||
| Atelopus chiriquiensis | Captive, Cerro Pando, Panama | Feb 1994 | Berger et al (1998) |
| Atelopus varius | Fortuna, Panama | Jan 1997 | Berger et al (1998) |
| Bufo haematiticus | Fortuna, Panama | Jan 1997 | Berger et al (1998) |
| Centrolenidae | |||
| Cochranella albomaculata | Fortuna, Panama | Jan 1997 | Berger et al (1998) |
| Cochranella prosoblepon | Fortuna, Panama | Jan 1997 | Berger et al (1998) |
| Leptodactylidae | |||
| Eleutherodactylus emcelae | Fortuna, Panama | Jan 1997 | Berger et al (1998) |
| Eleutherodactylus cruentus | Fortuna, Panama | Jan 1997 | Berger et al (1998) |
USA
| Bufonidae | |||
| Bufo boreas boreas | southern Rocky Mountains, Colorado | 1999 | Pollack & Blanchard (1999) |
| Bufo canorus | Sierra Nevada, California | 1974 | Green & Kagarise Sherman in Carey et al (1999) |
| Bufo microscaphus californicus | Captive, Washington | 1996 | Pessier et al (1999) |
| Dendrobatidae | |||
| Dendrobates azureus | Captive, Washington DC | 1991 | Pessier
et al 1999 Longcore et al (1998) |
| Dendrobates auratus | Captive, Washington DC | 1991 | Pessier
et al (1999) Longcore et al (1998) |
| Hyla arenicolor | Arizona | Nov 1999 | Sredl and Caldwell (2000) |
| Hylidae | |||
| Acris crepitans | Illinois | 1996 | Pessier et al (1999) |
| Litoria caerulea | Washington DC | 1991 | Pessier et al (1999) |
| Microhylidae | |||
| Dyscophus guineti | Captive, Washington DC | 1991 | Longcore et al (1998) |
| Ranidae | |||
| Rana berlandieri | Arizona | Nov 1999 | Sredl and Caldwell (2000) |
| Rana blairi | Arizona | Nov 1999 | Sredl and Caldwell (2000) |
| Rana catesbeiana | Savannah River Plant site, Barnwell County, South Carolina | 1978 | Peter
Daszak |
| North Carolina & Virginia | 2002 | Mitchell
and Green 2002 | |
| Rana chiricahuensis | Arizona | 1998 | Morell
(1999) |
| Nov 1999 | Sredl and Caldwell (2000) | ||
| Rana pipiens | Colorado Rockies | 1974 | Green, Carey & Corn in Carey et al (1999) |
| Rana sphenocephala | North Carolina | 2002 | Mitchell
and Green 2002 |
| Rana yavapiensis | Arizona | 1998 | Morell (1999) |
| Nov 1999 | Sredl and Caldwell (2000) | ||
| CAUDATA | |||
| Ambystomatidae | |||
| Ambystoma tigrinum | San Rafael Valley, Arizona | Nov-Dec 1999 | Davidson et al (2000) |
| Salamandridae | |||
| Pseudotriton ruber Northen Red Salamander | South Carolina | June 2002 | Don Nichols (2002) pers com |
Ecuador
Go to the site in Ecuador on declining amphibians and chytridiomycosis: http://www.puce.edu.ec/Zoologia/declinac.html. This is in Spanish. There is also a page in English that reports on the preliminary results of a project to look for chytridiomycosis. The project was funded by the DAPTF Rapid Response Fund.
| Bufonidae | |||
| Atelopus bomolochos | Riobamba Province | Dec 1980 | Andres Merino-Viteri & Luis Coloma in Berger et al (1999) and Ron and Merino (2000) |
| Atelopus spp. (aff. ignescens) | Riobamba Province | 1991 | Andres Merino-Viteri & Luis Coloma in Berger et al (1999) and Ron and Merino (2000) |
| Hylidae | |||
| Gastrotheca pseustes | Captive, Quito died 1-6 weeks after collection from Paramo del Cajas | Feb 1999 | Andres Merino-Viteri & Luis Coloma in Berger et al (1999) and Ron and Merino (2000) |
| Hyla psarolaima | ? | ? | Ron and Merino (2000) |
| Leptodactylidae | |||
| Telmatobius niger | Azuay Province | 1989 | Andres Merino-Viteri & Luis Coloma in and Ron and Merino (2000) Berger et al (1999) |
Uruguay
| Ranidae | |||
| Rana catesbiana | near Montevideo | 1999 | Mazzoni 2000 |
Venezuela
| Bufonidae | |||
| Atelopus cruciger | Estado Carabobo | 1986 | Guayasamin et al 2002 |
No reports.
OCEANIA
Forty six species of amphibians in Australia have been found infected with
B. dendrobatidis. These consist of 22 Hylidae, 24 Myobatrachidae and 2
introduced amphibians.
(Go to Australian
records)
In November 1999 chytridiomycosis was found in wild frogs in the South Island of New Zealand. Species infected were two introduced Australian Litoria that are now endemic and used in the pet trade. Subsequently Archey's frog, a rare endemic was found with chytridiomycosis in September 2001. Additional documents:
| Hylidae | |||
| Litoria raniformis | Christchurch | November 1999 | Norman and Waldman (2000) |
| Litoria ewingii | South Island | 2000 | Bishop (2000) |
| Leopelmatidae | |||
| Leiopelma archeyi | Coromandel Range, North Island | September 2001 | Kingsley (2002) |
Germany
| Dendrobatidae | |||
| Dendrobates auratus | Berlin (captive bred) | November 1999 | Mutschmann (2000) |
| Dendrobates galactonotus | Captive bred in Germany | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Dendrobates granulosus | Imported from Costa Rica, Panama via Canada | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Dendrobates lugubris | Captive bred in Germany | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Dendrobates pumilo | Berlin (imported from Costa Rica) | November 1999 | Mutschmann (2000a) |
| Dendrobates terribilis | Origin not reported | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Dendrobates tinctorius | Imported from Surinam via Canada | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Phyllobates bicolor | Berlin (captive bred) | November 1999 | Mutschmann (2000) |
| Phyllobates lugubris | Berlin (captive bred) | November 1999 | Mutschmann (2000) |
| Phyllobates vittatus | Imported from French Guayana | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Hylidae | |||
| Agalychnis callydrias | Captive bred in Germany | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Hyla punctata | Imported from Peru | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Litoria caerulea | Pet trade in Germany | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Phyllomedusa bicolor | Pet trade in Germany | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Ranidae | |||
| Rana arvalis | Wild frogs near Berlin | 1999 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| CAUDATA | |||
| Amphiumidae | |||
| Amphiuma tridactylum | Pet trade (imported from USA) | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Proteidae | |||
| Necturus maculosus | Pet trade (imported from USA) | 1999 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Sirenidae | |||
| Siren lacertina | Pet trade (imported from Georgia, USA) | 1999 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
| Salamandridae | |||
| Salamandra salamandra | Captive bred (European Community) | 2000 | Mutschmann (2000b) |
Italy
| Bombinatoridae | |||
| Bombina pachypus | dinatomi di Bologna | 2001 | Stagni et al (2002); Ferri (2002) |
Spain
| Discoglossidae | |||
| Alytes obstetricans | Peñalara Natural Park, near Madrid | 1997-1999 | Bosch, Martínez-Solano & García-París (2000) |
OCEANIA
LITERATURE CITED
Berger, L. Speare, R. Daszak, P. , Green, D. E., Cunningham, A. A., Goggin, C. L., Slocombe, R. Ragan, M. A. Hyatt, A. D., McDonald, K. R. Hines, H. B., Lips, K. R., Marantelli, G. and Parkes, H. (1998). Chytridiomycosis causes amphibian mortality associated with population declines in the rain forests of Australia and Central America. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, USA 95: 9031-9036.
Berger, L., Speare, R., Hyatt, A. Chytrid fungi and amphibian declines: Overview, implications and future directions. Declines and Disappearances of Australian Frogs. Ed. A. Campbell. Environment Australia: Canberra 1999: 21-31.
Bishop, Phil Chytrid fungi identified from dying frogs in New Zealand. Outbreak confirmed by Lee Berger.
Bosch, Jaime, Martínez-Solano, Iñigo and García-París, Mario. Chytridiomycosis in Spain: First European report of declines of wild amphibians associated with chytridiomycosis. Report confirmed by Lee Berger.
Carey, C., Cohen, N. and Rollins-Smith, L. A. 1999. Amphibian declines: An immunological perspective. Developmental Comparative Immunology 23: 459-472.
Davidson D, Pessier AP, Longcore JE, Parris M, Jancovich J, Brunner J, Schock D, Collins JP. Chytridiomycosis in Arizona (USA) tiger salamanders. Getting the Jump! on amphibian disease: Conference and workshop compendium. Cairns, 26-30 August 2000;23.
Ferri V. La micosi cutanea degli anfibi anche in Italia. Bufo News 2002;1:1-4.
Guayasamin JM, Bonaccorso EA, Speare R, and Mendez D. The roles of climatic variation and pathogenic fungus in declining populations of Aletopus cruciger (Anura: Bufonidae) in Venezuela. Joint Meeting of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, Herpetologists' League, and Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, 4-8 July 2002, Kasas City, USA.
Kingsley D. Environment News, 23 April 2002. http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/enviro/EnviroRepublish_537533.htm.
Longcore, J.E., Pessier, A.P. and Nichols, D.K. (1999) Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis gen. et sp. nov., a chytrid pathogenic to amphibians. Mycologia 91: 219-227.
Mazzoni R. Diseases in farmed American bull frog (Rana catesbeiana shaw, 1802) in Uruguay. Getting the Jump! on Amphibian Disease. Abstracts of conference, Cairns, 26-27 August 2000.
Mitchell JC, Green DE. Chytridiomycosis in two species of ranid frogs in the southeastern United States. Joint Meeting of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, Herpetologists' League, and Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, 4-8 July 2002, Kasas City, USA.
Morell, V. (1999). Are pathogens felling frogs? Science 284: 728-731.
Mutschmann, Frank. (2000). Record from Dr Mutschmann, Berlin. Report confirmed by Lee Berger.
Mutschmann, Frank. (2000b). Record from Dr Frank Mutschmann, Berlin.
Norman, Richard, New Zealand Wildlife Health Centre, Massey University, http://ivabs.massey.ac.nz/centres/wildlife/ and Bruce Waldman, University of Canterbury. (2000). Report confirmed by Lee Berger.
Pessier, A.P., Nichols, D.K., Longcore, J.E., and Fuller, M.S. (1999). Cutaneous chytridiomycosis in poison dart frogs (Dendrobates spp.) and White's tree frogs (Litoria caerulea). Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation 11:194-199.
Pollack, M.P. and Blanchard, H. (1999). Chytrid fungus, frogs - USA (Colorado). ProMED Archives 13 Sep 1999.
Reed KD, Ruth GR, Meyer JA, Shukla SK. Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in a breeding colony of African clawed frogs (Xenopus tropicalis). Emerging Infectious Diseases 2000;6:196-199.
Rollins-Smith LA, Reinert LK, Miera V, Conlon JM. Antimicrobial peptide defenses of the Tarahumara frog, Rana tarahumarae. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 2002;297(2):361-367.
Ron SR, Merino A. Amphibian declines in Ecuador: overview and first report of chytridiomycosis from South America. Froglog 2000;42:2-3. Online Spanish version.
Sredl, Michael and Dennis Caldwell. (2000). Wintertime Population Surveys - Call for Volunteers. Sonoran Herpetologist (Tucson Herpetological Newsletter) 13:1.
Stagni G, Scoccianti C, Fusini R. Segnalazione di chytridiomicosi in popolazioni di Bombina pachypus (Anura, Bombinatoridae) dell'Appennino tosco-emiliano. IV Congresso della Societas Herpetologica Italica, a Ercolano. 2002;
If you wish to submit ill or dead amphibians for examination, or their toes
for examination for chytridiomycosis, please contact:
Diana Mendez (diana.mendez@jcu.edu.au) or Rick
Speare (mailto:richard.speare@jcu.edu.au).
Updated 26 January, 2005
Rick Speare