DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Non-lethal Effects of Chytridiomycosis on the Reproductive Behavior of Tungara Frogs

世界正在经历人类历史上最严重的脊椎动物灭绝，因为一种真菌导致了许多两栖动物物种的灭绝。目前，有168种两栖动物已经灭绝，而且这个数字还在上升。本研究将探讨这种新兴真菌病原体对热带蛙种的影响。虽然病原体正在迅速传播，其感染通常是致命的，但一些物种，包括本研究的重点，似乎具有耐药性。研究人员将确定病原体对成虫、蝌蚪存活率和雌性配偶选择的亚致死效应。这项研究将通过展示这些疾病甚至对“抗性”物种造成的损失，提高我们对野外突发疾病的认识。本研究将确定壶菌病是一种由壶菌真菌壶菌（Batrachochytrium dendroatidis, Bd）引起的突发传染病，如何影响青蛙的繁殖行为。很少有人注意到壶菌病对抗性菌种的亚致死效应。Túngara感染Bd的青蛙种群没有任何明显的疾病迹象，这使我们能够研究潜在的病原体压力如何影响生殖行为。第一个目标是了解广泛分布的热带Túngara青蛙中壶菌感染的基本流行病学。自2010年以来，研究人员每年对从巴拿马西部到达里恩峡（Darien Gap）约1000公里的样带的Túngara青蛙种群中Bd的存在进行采样。所有被调查的人群目前都感染了Bd。第二个目的是研究Bd诱导的潜在病原体应激如何与性交流、配偶选择、活力和繁殖成功相互作用。为了评估对感染的反应和鸣叫行为之间是否存在权衡，研究人员将分析雄性在实验感染Bd之前和之后的广告叫声。研究人员将对这些叫声进行雌性趋声性实验，以确定雄性感染Bd是否会影响雌性的配偶选择，并确定对感染的反应在发育和整体表现上是否有成本。行为测试的视频、方案细节和数据将应要求提供给其他研究人员，并将在结果发表后公开。数据备份将安全地存储在UT Box、TACC计算机中的Ryan Lab帐户和外部硬盘驱动器中。当数据发布时，它们将存储在DRYAD存储库中。

The world is experiencing the greatest vertebrate extinction in human history, because a fungus is responsible for the demise of many amphibian species. Currently, 168 amphibian species are extinct, and the number is rising. This study will investigate the effect of this emergent fungal pathogen on a tropical frog species. Although the pathogen is rapidly spreading and its infections are usually lethal, some species, including the focus of this study, appear to be resistant. The researchers will determine the sub-lethal effects of the pathogen on adults, tadpole survivorship, and female mate choice. This study will advance our knowledge of emergent diseases in the wild by showing the toll that such diseases take even on "resistant" species.This study will determine how chytridiomycosis, an emergent infectious disease caused by the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), influences the reproductive behavior of frogs. Little attention has been given to sub-lethal effects of chytridiomycosis in resistant species. Túngara frog populations infected with Bd lack any clear signs of the disease, allowing us to examine how the potential pathogen-stress influences reproductive behavior. The first aim is to understand the basic epidemiology of chytrid infections in the widespread tropical Túngara frog. Since 2010, the researchers have sampled annually for the presence of Bd in populations of Túngara frogs from western Panama to the Darien Gap, an approximately 1000 km transect. All populations surveyed are currently infected with Bd. The second aim is to examine how the potential pathogen-stress induced by Bd interact with sexual communication, mate choice, vigor, and reproductive success. To assess if there is a trade-off between the response to the infection and calling behavior, the researchers will analyze males' advertisement calls before and after experimental infection with Bd. The researchers will perform female phonotaxis experiments with these same calls to determine if male infection with Bd influences female mate choice, and determine if there is a cost of the response to the infection in development and overall performance. Videos of behavioral tests, protocol details and data will be available to other researchers upon request, and will be publicly available after publication of results. Data back-ups will be securely stored in UT Box, at the Ryan Lab account in the TACC computer, and in external hard drives. As data are published they will be deposited in the DRYAD repository.