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Ribeiroia Infection Is Not Responsible for Vermont Amphibian Deformities

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Abstract

Reports of limb deformities in amphibians have garnered wide notice from scientists and the public alike. Recent laboratory and field research has supported the hypothesis that infection by the helminth parasite, Ribeiroia ondatrae, is associated with deformities, particularly in the western United States. In this study, observational and experimental evidence from eastern United States (Vermont) provides evidence that Ribeiroia is absent from a large sample of sites including those with a history of relatively high frequencies of deformity, that the composition of deformities is distinct from that associated with experimental infection by Ribeiroia, and that the composition of limb deformities seen in natural populations in Vermont is typical of that reported in the literature. We suggest that while Ribeiroia has been shown to be responsible for deformities in some species and locations, other factors may be responsible where the composition of deformities is inconsistent with patterns resulting from known Ribeiroia infection.

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Acknowledgments

N. Cothran, L. DeMarchis, B. Fellman, E. MacEvoy, and J. Martin provided assistance with laboratory and field work. S. Brady, T. Langkilde, E. Lee, and M. Urban offered helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. This work was supported by the NIH-NSF Ecology of Infectious Diseases Program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA

    David K. Skelly, Susan R. Bolden & L. Kealoha Freidenburg

  2. Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA

    David K. Skelly & L. Kealoha Freidenburg

  3. Department of Natural Resources, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 03824, USA

    Nicole A. Freidenfelds

  4. Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, Waterbury, VT, 05671, USA

    Richard Levey

Authors
  1. David K. Skelly
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  2. Susan R. Bolden
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  3. L. Kealoha Freidenburg
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  4. Nicole A. Freidenfelds
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  5. Richard Levey
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Correspondence to David K. Skelly.

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Skelly, D.K., Bolden, S.R., Freidenburg, L.K. et al. Ribeiroia Infection Is Not Responsible for Vermont Amphibian Deformities. EcoHealth 4, 156–163 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-007-0103-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-007-0103-7

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