Diseases of Aquatic Organisms

The U.S. Geological Survey Amphibian Research Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) is using a combination of swabbing, non-lethal tissue sampling, soil and water sampling, and collection of a variety of other environmental variables to determine the relationships between the prevalence and pathogen load of Bd infection and environmental stressors on green treefrog survival.

Native freshwater mussels play a critical role in aquatic environments and are considered “ecosystem engineers” and indicators of water quality by constantly filtering water. Populations of native freshwater mussels have declined in recent years, and this decline has been attributed to factors such as habitat degradation, pollution, and invasive species, among others. The importance of these...

Assessing Impacts of Emerging and Established Diseases to Aquatic Ecosystems The decline of native freshwater mussels has the potential to devastate aquatic communities. Although factors such as habitat degradation, pollution, and invasive species have been linked to this decline, these potential causes cannot fully explain the large-scale mussel die-offs that have occurred in the past 20 years...

Reporting of wildlife diseases is important to build situational awareness regarding wildlife health, build national and global knowledge capacity, increase coordination among agencies, and integrate wildlife health data into other surveillance frameworks .

Disease is a major threat facing amphibian and reptile populations around the world. Our research addresses interactions between pathogens, the environment, and hosts to better understand ways to prevent the spread of disease.

USGS researchers are working with partners to assess the health and foraging behavior of Florida manatees in the northern Indian River Lagoon and Banana River, areas that have experienced declining seagrasses due to an extended phytoplankton bloom.

The USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) provides the following index of wildlife disease information resources as a starting point to learn about selected wildlife diseases.

Species Studied - Chinook Salmon ( Oncorhynchus tshawytscha )

Scientists of the USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) in collaboration with partners have developed risk assessments for Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans ( Bsal ) in the United States and have begun sampling high-risk locations for the fungus.

Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans ( Bsal ) is an emerging pathogen capable of causing significant morbidity and mortality in salamanders.

Disease in amphibian populations can have a range of effects, from devastating declines following introduction of a novel pathogen to recurring breakout events on a landscape. Elucidating mechanisms underlying the effects of diseases on amphibian populations is crucial to help managers make appropriate decisions to achieve management goals for amphibians.

Coral reefs worldwide are under tremendous stress primarily due to human activities along the coasts. While climate change, over fishing, and coastal development have been implicated as a major cause of coral reef decline, diseases seem to play an increasing role.