Are Pathogens Felling Frogs?

FROG DECLINESTOWNSVILLE, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA-- Since the 1970s, populations and species of frogs have been vanishing worldwide. Many researchers have blamed environmental conditions ranging from increased ultraviolet light to global warming and wind-borne pollutants. Now new data from Australia suggest that the real killer may be a virulent amphibian pathogen called the chytrid fungus. However, several leading U.S. herpetologists resist the notion of a single cause, and some suspect that an environmental cofactor is magnifying the chytrid's effects.