EcoHealth Alliance and Partners Report Habitat Split as a Driver of Disease in Amphibians
Habitat split as a driver of disease in amphibians available now on Wiley Online Library. The report details the detrimental effects of human-driven disturbance and separation of habitats used by amphibians to complete their life cycles.
Read the full report here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/brv.12927

Figure from Habitat split as a driver of disease in amphibians, Becker et. al
“Habitat split has been linked to population declines in vertebrates, e.g. amphibians breeding in lowland aquatic habitats and overwintering in fragments of upland terrestrial vegetation. Here, we link habitat split to enhanced disease risk in amphibians (i) by reviewing the biotic and abiotic forces shaping elements of immunity and (ii) through a spatially oriented field study focused on tropical frogs.” – Becker et. al
Research permits were provided by Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e Recursos Naturais, Renovaveis – IBAMA, Instituto Chico Mendes – SISBIO, Sao Paulo State Park Permit, Conselho de Gestao do Patrimônio Genético, and the local Animal Care Committees. With partial funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation.
Partners
Penn State University – https://www.psu.edu/
University of Alabama – https://www.ua.edu/
Universidade Federal de São Carlos – https://www.ufscar.br/
Universidade Estadual Paulista – https://www2.unesp.br/
Universidade de São Paulo – https://www5.usp.br/
Vanderbilt University – https://www.vanderbilt.edu/
University of Massachusetts Boston – https://www.umb.edu/
About EcoHealth Alliance:
EcoHealth Alliance is an international environmental health nonprofit dedicated to protecting wildlife and the public from emerging infectious diseases. We work with governments, scientists, and policymakers around the world to make critical changes for pandemic prediction and prevention. Our dedicated scientists conduct field research and develop tools to safeguard the health of the planet, people, and wildlife.
Press Contact: Majelia Ampadu, ampadu@ecohealthalliance.org