Date: March 13, 2017
Source: Plataforma SINC
A new strain of ranavirus is
currently causing mass mortality in several species of amphibian in the Serra
da Estrela, the highest mountain range in continental Portugal. This infectious
agent is hypervirulent and also affects fish and reptiles, which complicates
the situation, according to a study boasting the collaboration of the National
Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid.
An emerging virus is affecting
amphibian populations in Portugal, but this is not the first time amphibians
have been a source of worry in the country. In 2009, hundreds of midwife toads
(Alytes obstetricans) were found dead
in Serra da Estrela Natural Park.
A research study published in the
journal Scientific Reports raises a new alert on this genus of virus, which has
also been discovered in Spain and elsewhere in Europe. As Jaime Bosch, a
researcher at the National Museum of Natural Sciences and co-author of the
study, explains: "Ranaviruses have been known about for a long time,
although in recent years globalisation is setting off mass mortalities
throughout the world, and new strains also keep appearing, probably from
Asia."
The fact that these viruses also
affect fish and reptiles complicates the situation enormously, firstly because
they can spread easily and also because of their persistence in the
environment, even after amphibians disappear.
"They have probably been
infecting amphibian populations in Spain for several decades. In 1992 we
discovered what turned out to be the first known case in our country, although
at the time we didn't even know exactly which organism caused the
problem," the scientist adds.
In autumn 2011, another curious
episode of mortality arose in the Serra da Estrela, which not only affected
midwife toads but also other species of amphibians in the park. The episode was
in contrast to all mortality patterns previously associated with
chytridiomycosis on the Iberian Peninsula and Europe.
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