Gardeners may be spreading lethal frog disease throughout UK, study warns : theguardian

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Gardeners may be spreading lethal frog disease throughout UK, study warns

Gardeners may be spreading lethal frog disease throughout UK, study warns

British suburban gardeners may be unknowingly driving the spread of a lethal frog disease by stocking their ponds with exotic or wild aquatic species, research shows.Scientists from ZSL and Queen Mary University of London say their findings could explain the rapid spread of ranavirus across UK amphibian populations in recent decades.Ranavirus is thought to have been introduced at least twice since the 1980s - most likely from North America.The disease was first found in south-east England, but has since spread across the UK with recorded outbreaks in Cornwall, Cardiff, Lancashire and Newcastle.


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Garden ponds 'playing role' in frog disease spread

Garden ponds 'playing role' in frog disease spread

Image copyright Lewis Campbell/ZSL Image caption Moving frogspawn or frogs between ponds may aid the spread of ranavirusGarden ponds are playing a role in the spread of deadly frog diseases across the UK, a study suggests.Ranaviruses can infect amphibians, reptiles and fish.In the UK, they have devastated common frog populations.This research suggests that the introduction of infected animals from aquatic retailers into ponds or moving species between different ponds may be exacerbating the problem.


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Garden ponds 'playing role' in frog disease spread

Garden ponds 'playing role' in frog disease spread

Image copyright Lewis Campbell/ZSL Image caption Moving frogspawn or frogs between ponds may aid the spread of ranavirusGarden ponds are playing a role in the spread of deadly frog diseases across the UK, a study suggests.Ranaviruses can infect amphibians, reptiles and fish.In the UK, they have devastated common frog populations.This research suggests that the introduction of infected animals from aquatic retailers into ponds or moving species between different ponds may be exacerbating the problem.