The heat cleared the infection within a few weeks, and about 70 percent of the infected frogs survived the 15-week experiment, said lead researcher Anthony Waddle. Waddle and a team of biologists The results were announced last week Nature journalThe hope is that their simple invention will help solve a major wildlife problem.
Waddle built the shelter using black bricks and greenhouse netting.
“It’s freezing cold outside, but when you go inside [the shelter] “The humidity and the heat just make you sweat a lot,” Waddle, a postdoctoral researcher at Macquarie University in Macquarie Park, Australia, told The Washington Post.
Chytridiomycosis is Batrachochytrium dendrobatidisThe aquatic fungus is thought to have first been discovered in Asia in the 1930s, but has since spread rapidly around the world through trade and travel. The contagious fungus has pushed dozens of amphibian species to the brink of extinction, causing respiratory problems in many species and causing their hearts to stop.
Scientists have tried to save amphibians Removal of infected seeds From their habitat, Chemical disinfection Their home and Heating the water Resources for fighting fungi. Waddle, 2021 Made a vaccine Against the frog Batrachochytrium dendrobatidisBut he wanted to invent a solution that frogs could use themselves, especially during the winter when chytrid fungus is prevalent. The highest number of cases.
In December 2020, Waddle bought several green and gold bell frogs. Endangered Near a metal fence post in New South Wales, Australia, one side was cold and the other was hot, but the frogs were attracted to the warm side.
The researchers then separated 66 infected frogs into warm and cold areas of the lab: the frogs in the warmer area (about 86 degrees) fought off the infection, while the frogs in the colder area (about 66 degrees) remained infected.
These results led the researchers to believe that if they created warmer habitats, frogs would choose to live there and benefit from it.
For their main experiment, the scientists used equipment including clay bricks, black paint, greenhouse netting, and cable ties. They painted the bricks black to collect the sun’s heat. They then stacked 10 bricks with 10 small holes in them. They covered the brick stack with greenhouse netting to retain heat and used cable ties to stabilize the shelter.
“I didn’t think it would work because it was too simple,” Waddle said.
In July 2021, on the Macquarie University campus, the researchers set up shelters in tubs filled with gravel, water, artificial plants, and flower pots to mimic a frog’s typical habitat. They then placed 239 frogs in the tubs and gave them a choice between an unshaded shelter or a shelter shaded by a cloth. Most frogs were attracted to the warmth of the bricks in the unshaded shelter.
The unshaded shelters were about 8 degrees warmer than the shaded habitats, and that made a difference: About a month after the start of the experiment, the researchers tested the frogs’ skin swabs and found that infections in the unshaded shelters were healing the fastest.
Waddle said 167 of the 239 frogs were still alive by November 2021, just before the start of the Australian summer. Wild frogs usually start to die about three weeks after becoming infected, the Australian Department of Health said. Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
The researchers also found that frogs that survived chytridiomycosis became more resistant to the disease, a promising sign for the survival of the roughly 10 million frogs. 15 years in captivity.
Brian Pijanowski, a professor of forestry and natural resources at Purdue University, said in an email to The Washington Post that Waddle’s shelter offers “a modicum of optimism” in solving a disease that has killed at least 10 million animals. 90 species of amphibians.
“These are dire figures and we need a new approach to turn things around,” he said.
Waddle has set up several shelters in Sydney Olympic Park, Australia. Largest remaining population The area is home to two species of frogs, the yellow-spotted frog and the yellow-spotted frog, and he plans to monitor their population over the next few years.
He said He hopes parks and homeowners will set up their own “frog saunas.” He has created a public guide on building one, estimating they would cost about $80 each.
“Conservation research is a big loss,” Waddle said. “You just try it, it doesn’t work, you try it again, it doesn’t work. But we’ve got something, and it’s actionable.”