Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level
<i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> (<i>Bd</i>) has been associated with the severe declines and extinctions of amphibians in Costa Rica that primarily occurred during the 1980s and 1990s. However, the current impact of <i>Bd</i> infection on amphibian species i...
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MDPI AG
2019-08-01
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| Series: | Diversity |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/11/8/129 |
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| author | Héctor Zumbado-Ulate Kiersten N. Nelson Adrián García-Rodríguez Gerardo Chaves Erick Arias Federico Bolaños Steven M. Whitfield Catherine L. Searle |
| author_facet | Héctor Zumbado-Ulate Kiersten N. Nelson Adrián García-Rodríguez Gerardo Chaves Erick Arias Federico Bolaños Steven M. Whitfield Catherine L. Searle |
| author_sort | Héctor Zumbado-Ulate |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> (<i>Bd</i>) has been associated with the severe declines and extinctions of amphibians in Costa Rica that primarily occurred during the 1980s and 1990s. However, the current impact of <i>Bd</i> infection on amphibian species in Costa Rica is unknown. We aimed to update the list of amphibian species in Costa Rica and evaluate the prevalence and infection intensity of <i>Bd</i> infection across the country to aid in the development of effective conservation strategies for amphibians. We reviewed taxonomic lists and included new species descriptions and records for a total of 215 amphibian species in Costa Rica. We also sampled for <i>Bd</i> at nine localities from 2015−2018 and combined these data with additional <i>Bd</i> occurrence data from multiple studies conducted in amphibian communities across Costa Rica from 2005−2018. With this combined dataset, we found that <i>Bd</i> was common (overall infection rate of 23%) across regions and elevations, but infection intensity was below theoretical thresholds associated with mortality. <i>Bd</i> was also more prevalent in Caribbean lowlands and in terrestrial amphibians with an aquatic larval stage; meanwhile, infection load was the highest in direct-developing species (forest and stream-dwellers). Our findings can be used to prioritize regions and taxonomic groups for conservation strategies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T14:01:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a3e423eff7a241ebbb9001bb07b637ae |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1424-2818 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T14:01:42Z |
| publishDate | 2019-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Diversity |
| spelling | doaj.art-a3e423eff7a241ebbb9001bb07b637ae2022-12-22T04:20:06ZengMDPI AGDiversity1424-28182019-08-0111812910.3390/d11080129d11080129Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species LevelHéctor Zumbado-Ulate0Kiersten N. Nelson1Adrián García-Rodríguez2Gerardo Chaves3Erick Arias4Federico Bolaños5Steven M. Whitfield6Catherine L. Searle7Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USAEscuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, 11501–2060 San José, Costa RicaEscuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, 11501–2060 San José, Costa RicaEscuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, 11501–2060 San José, Costa RicaEscuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, 11501–2060 San José, Costa RicaConservation and Research Department, Zoo Miami, Miami, FL 33177, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA<i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> (<i>Bd</i>) has been associated with the severe declines and extinctions of amphibians in Costa Rica that primarily occurred during the 1980s and 1990s. However, the current impact of <i>Bd</i> infection on amphibian species in Costa Rica is unknown. We aimed to update the list of amphibian species in Costa Rica and evaluate the prevalence and infection intensity of <i>Bd</i> infection across the country to aid in the development of effective conservation strategies for amphibians. We reviewed taxonomic lists and included new species descriptions and records for a total of 215 amphibian species in Costa Rica. We also sampled for <i>Bd</i> at nine localities from 2015−2018 and combined these data with additional <i>Bd</i> occurrence data from multiple studies conducted in amphibian communities across Costa Rica from 2005−2018. With this combined dataset, we found that <i>Bd</i> was common (overall infection rate of 23%) across regions and elevations, but infection intensity was below theoretical thresholds associated with mortality. <i>Bd</i> was also more prevalent in Caribbean lowlands and in terrestrial amphibians with an aquatic larval stage; meanwhile, infection load was the highest in direct-developing species (forest and stream-dwellers). Our findings can be used to prioritize regions and taxonomic groups for conservation strategies.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/11/8/129amphibianchytridiomycosisconservationdiseaseenzooticsepizooticspopulation declines |
| spellingShingle | Héctor Zumbado-Ulate Kiersten N. Nelson Adrián García-Rodríguez Gerardo Chaves Erick Arias Federico Bolaños Steven M. Whitfield Catherine L. Searle Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level Diversity amphibian chytridiomycosis conservation disease enzootics epizootics population declines |
| title | Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level |
| title_full | Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level |
| title_fullStr | Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level |
| title_full_unstemmed | Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level |
| title_short | Endemic Infection of <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> in Costa Rica: Implications for Amphibian Conservation at Regional and Species Level |
| title_sort | endemic infection of i batrachochytrium dendrobatidis i in costa rica implications for amphibian conservation at regional and species level |
| topic | amphibian chytridiomycosis conservation disease enzootics epizootics population declines |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/11/8/129 |
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