Researchers, working under the supervision of scientists from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and coordinated by Dr Maciej Pabijan from the Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, conducted the first screening of amphibian pathogens in Poland.

Amphibians are one of the most endangered groups of vertebrates in the world, mainly due to the destruction of their habitats by humans and the threatening diseases. Microscopic fungi of the genus Batrachochytrium such as B. dendrobatidis (Bd) and B. salamandrivorans (Bsal) as well as viruses of the genus Ranavirus (Rv) are decimating amphibian populations worldwide. There is an urgent need to know their distribution and dissemination in order to understand and reduce the losses they cause to the biodiversity of amphibians.

According to data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), 41 percent of the world amphibian species are threatened with extinction.

Scientists have tested over a thousand amphibians for the pathogens. Their research has just been published in the journal “Diseases of Aquatic Organisms”: https://www.int-res.com/prepress/d03631.html