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High Occupancy of Stream Salamanders Despite High Ranavirus Prevalence in a Southern Appalachians Watershed

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Abstract

The interactive effects of environmental stressors and emerging infectious disease pose potential threats to stream salamander communities and their headwater stream ecosystems. To begin assessing these threats, we conducted occupancy surveys and pathogen screening of stream salamanders (Family Plethodontidae) in a protected southern Appalachians watershed in Georgia and North Carolina, USA. Of the 101 salamanders screened for both chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) and Ranavirus, only two exhibited low-level chytrid infections. Prevalence of Ranavirus was much higher (30.4% among five species of Desmognathus). Despite the ubiquity of ranaviral infections, we found high probabilities of site occupancy (≥0.60) for all stream salamander species.

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Acknowledgments

This project was supported by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Georgia State Wildlife Grant T-34-R) and Nongame Wildlife Conservation Funds administered by Georgia Department of Natural Resources. We thank J. McCollum and Georgia Wildlife Federation for access to field sites and significant in-kind support. J. Jensen and C. Camp provided expert assistance with salamander identification and other aspects of the study. We are grateful to the many dedicated volunteers from Georgia Wildlife Federation (especially S. Caster, S. Downing, D. and E. Jennings, A. and M. Levine, E. Minche, J. Shaw), Zoo Atlanta (D. Brothers, E. Kabay, M. Quinn, L. Wyrwich), and University of Georgia (K. Barrett, D. Satterfield) for their assistance with data collection. We also thank E. Campbell Grant and A. Durso for advice regarding occupancy analyses and S. Walls and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. Field research was performed under a special use permit from U.S. Forest Service and collecting permits from Georgia (29-WBH-10-55) and North Carolina (10-SC00015). Use of animals was reviewed and approved by the University of Georgia IACUC (A2007 10-186).

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Correspondence to Betsie B. Rothermel.

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Rothermel, B.B., Travis, E.R., Miller, D.L. et al. High Occupancy of Stream Salamanders Despite High Ranavirus Prevalence in a Southern Appalachians Watershed. EcoHealth 10, 184–189 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-013-0843-5

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