Many amphibian species have declined throughout their ranges, and often the causes of those declines are poorly understood (Luedtke et al. 2023). Large-scale amphibian declines were first observed in the 1970s, and in the following decades, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) infection was determined as the cause of some of these declines (Fisher and Garner 2020). Retrospective studies allow us to evaluate historical disease patterns and are particularly valuable in species that are extirpated or extinct. The Black-spotted Newt (Notophthalmus meridionalis; Salamandridae) is an understudied species of salamander native to south Texas, USA, and northeastern Mexico that has shown alarming population declines over the past 70 years, most notably prior to 1980 (Judd 1985; Rappole and Klicka 1991). Here, we assayed 314 N. meridionalis museum specimens to determine whether the historical presence of Bd may have contributed to population declines in this species.

Arnott, R. L. W., Lopez, C. B., Rogers, M. N., Davis, D. R., Robinson, P. S., Kline, R. J., LaDuc, T. J., Zamudio, K. R., Belasen, A. M. (2024). Low historical prevalence of the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in Black-spotted Newts (Notophthalmus meridionalis) from Texas and Mexico. Herpetological Review 55(3).

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