Should the (Leopard) frog change it’s spots? An investigation of the factors involving parasitism in Rana pipiens
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Summary
The fungal parasite Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis has been referred to as “possibly the most deadly invasive species on the planet”, and has been implicated in amphibian declines and extinctions globally. Major research effort has been directed towards understanding the spread of the disease and the conditions under which fatal epidemics can arise, however relatively little attention has focussed towards understanding the factors underlying long term persistence of the parasite. In this study I sampled 422 Northern Leopard frogs (Rana pipiens) across sites in an region where B.dendrobatidis is endemic, in order to identify both environmental and biotic attributes associated with infection status of individuals. Relationships between aspects of frog morphology and infection risk have been recorded in this population, and this aimed to identify whether these relationships persist. Both environmental characteristics and intrinsic host traits were found to be associated with infection, and these results are discussed in the context of the current understanding of this host-parasite system, however no evidence was found of the previously reported link between frog pigmentation and infection.