Delivered by J.J. Apodaca on 14 August 2015 at a regional Bsal meeting in Asheville, NC, USA

1. First
Southern
Appalachians
Batrachochytrium
salamandrivorans
(Bsal)
mee6ng

3. History
• First
discovered
in
The
Netherlands
(2013)
• Reduced
infected
popula6ons
to
less
than
4%

4. Effects
on
salamanders
• Mul6focal
superficial
erosions
and
deep
ulcera6ons
all
over
the
body
• Death
generally
occurs
in
under
2
weeks
aNer
a
short
episode
of
anorexia,
apathy,
and
ataxia

5. Thermal
preference

8. Threat
to
southern
Appalachian
species
• Martel
et
al.
(2014)
tested
35
species
across
all
amphibian
orders

9. Threat
to
southern
Appalachian
species
• Threat-­‐
moderate
• Temp
of
most
habitat
is
outside
of
ideal
growth
range
• 1
of
3
Hynobs
contracted
Bsal
• Habitat
of
S.
keyserlingii-­‐
terrestrial
but
breed
in
permanent
pools

10. Sirenidae
• Threat
-­‐
moderate
• Only
species
tested
does
contract
Bsal,
but
is
tolerant

11. Ambystoma6ds
• Threat-­‐
low
• 2
species
tested-­‐
both
tolerant
• Larvae
suscep6bility
untested

12. Salamandrids
• Threat-­‐
extremely
high
• Nearly
all
species
died
from
infec6on
• Large
popula6ons
and
wide
spread-­‐
can
serve
as
a
reservoir
• Both
terrestrial
and
aqua6c
forms
give
this
species
the
ability
to
rapidly
spread
Bsal

13. Waterdogs
and
amphiumas
• ???

14. Dusky
and
climbing
salamanders
• Threat-­‐
High
• Bsal
was
lethal
in
Hydromantes,
which
is
very
similar
ecologically
to
Aneides
• Desmogs
are
endemic
widely
spread
and
ecologically
diverse

15. Woodland
Plethodon6ds
• Threat-­‐
moderate
due
simply
to
the
number
of
species
• Plethodon
glu:nosus
was
immune

16. Splerpines
• Threat-­‐
low
to
moderate
• Gyrinophilus
was
immune
• Again,
very
diverse

17. Conclusions
• Bsal
has
the
poten6al
to
decimate
southern
Appalachian
salamander
diversity
and
density
• The
biggest
threats
appear
to
be
to
red
spo[ed
newts,
green
salamanders,
and
the
dusky
salamanders
• We
need
a
lot
more
data
and
conserva6on
strategy