drivers of ranavirosis in common frogs

Back in 2014 I was excited to join the amphibian disease research group of Dr Amber Griffiths at the University of Exeter as part of my MSc in Biodiversity & Conservation. Ranavirosis is a viral disease that has been implicated in the declines of some common frog populations in the UK and my research was looking to better understand how we could lessen its impacts.   

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With thanks to UK charity Froglife I was able to analyse the Frog Mortality Project dataset - a citizen science project collating reports of dead frogs since 1992. The dataset provided a wealth of detailed observations and information about the garden in which the mortality had been found, how the garden was managed and the community composition of the pond. Our findings provided insights into the drivers of ranavirosis disease, disease dynamics and management approaches that could help alleviate its impacts on common frogs. Some simple conservation actions we identified included avoiding the use of chemicals and not stocking the pond with fish (a potential disease reservoir).

 

Importantly, this research was also the first time that abiotic and biotic characteristics had been associated with disease in the UK, opening up a whole host of new research questions to address!

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​Alongside this analysis I established a new network of ponds across Cornwall to conduct disease surveillance. I didn't find any evidence of Ranavirus in Cornwall through swabbing of live amphibians or post-mortem of carcases, though the mortality database suggests low levels in the county - fingers crossed this stays low. Further surveillance will be important!

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You can download our paper from PLOS ONE here and a FROGLOG magazine article about the findings here.  Our findings were well received by national media including The Times and on Radio 4's Inside Science.