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Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in the Arid and Thermally Extreme Sonoran Desert
Ist Teil von
EcoHealth, 2023-12, Vol.20 (4), p.370-380
Ort / Verlag
New York: Springer US
Erscheinungsjahr
2023
Link zum Volltext
Quelle
SpringerLink (Online service)
Beschreibungen/Notizen
Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis
(
Bd
), the causative agent of the devastating global amphibian disease chytridiomycosis, was not projected to threaten amphibians in hot and arid regions due to its sensitivity to heat and desiccation. However,
Bd
is being detected more frequently than ever in hot and arid regions of Australia and the USA, challenging our current understanding of the environmental tolerances of the pathogen under natural conditions. We surveyed for
Bd
in an extremely hot and arid portion of the Sonoran Desert, where the pathogen is not projected to occur, and related presence and prevalence of the pathogen to local environmental conditions. We collected eDNA samples from isolated desert water sites including six tinajas and 13 catchments in June and August of 2020 and swabbed a total of 281 anurans of three species (red-spotted toad
Anaxyrus punctatus,
Couch’s spadefoot
Scaphiopus couchii,
and the Sonoran Desert toad
Incillius alvarius
) across five catchments and six tinajas from June to September of 2020. Overall,
Bd
occurred at 68.4% of sites, despite extreme heat and aridity routinely exceeding tolerances established in laboratory studies. Average summer maximum air and water temperatures were 40.7°C and 30.7°C, respectively, and sites received an average of just 16.9 mm of precipitation throughout the summer monsoon season. Prevalence was low (5.7%) across species and life stage. Our results demonstrate that
Bd
is capable of persisting and infecting amphibians beyond its projected range, indicating a need to account for higher thermal tolerances when quantifying risk of
Bd
presence and infection.