Imagine a pristine Minnesota wetland, buzzing with life — the familiar chorus of spring peepers and the occasional flash of a bright-spotted salamander. Now, imagine a silent, unseen threat capable of wiping out these delicate populations.
This is the reality facing amphibians worldwide, driven in part by a group of deadly pathogens known as chytrid fungi.
The immediate concern is Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), which is already driving population declines in North America. However, an even greater threat is looming: Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal). Though it hasn’t been detected in North America yet, Bsal has caused mass die-offs of salamanders in Europe, and studies show Minnesota’s native species are highly susceptible. For amphibians like the Eastern Newt, found at the western edge of its range in Minnesota, Bsal infection can be deadly.
This new fungal threat requires a proactive, prevention-first approach. To ensure Minnesota is ready, a multi-institutional research effort led by Amy Kinsley, assistant professor at the College of Veterinary Medicine, secured a new round of funding: $200,000 from the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) through the Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center.
"This work is really about planning and preparedness,” Kinsley says. “When students, volunteers, and agency partners contribute to surveillance and planning efforts, we can turn local observations into statewide protection strategies. That collective effort strengthens Minnesota’s ability to protect not just amphibians, but the broader biodiversity and ecosystem health they support if Bsal ever arrives."
Source : umn.edu