Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 371(1709): 20150457

PMC: PMC5095536

PMID: 28080983

Snake fungal disease: an emerging threat to wild snakes

Katie Schmidt+10 authors

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^{US Geological Survey–National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, WI 53711, USA}

^{New York Center for Turtle Rehabilitation and Conservation, Inc., Narrowburg, NY 12764, USA}

^{Minnesota Department of Natural Resources–Nongame Wildlife Program, Saint Paul, MN 55155, USA}

^{Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, Whitewater, WI 53190, USA}

^{Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, 101 South Webster Street, Madison, WI 53707, USA}

^{Department of Biology, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, Stevens Point, WI 54481, USA}

^{Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, Rutland, VT 05701, USA}

^{Biology Department, Stetson University, DeLand, FL 32723, USA}

^{US Geological Survey–Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Lafayette, LA 70506, USA}

^{Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA}

^{Department of Forestry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546, USA}

^{Animal Health Diagnostic Center, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA}

^{College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA}

e-mail: vog.sgsu@hcrolj

One contribution of 18 to a discussion meeting issue ‘Tackling emerging fungal threats to animal health, food security and ecosystem resilience’.

Electronic supplementary material is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.3493056.

One contribution of 18 to a discussion meeting issue ‘Tackling emerging fungal threats to animal health, food security and ecosystem resilience’.Electronic supplementary material is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.3493056.

Accepted 2016 Jun 8.

Abstract

Since 2006, there has been a marked increase in the number of reports of severe and often fatal fungal skin infections in wild snakes in the eastern USA. The emerging condition, referred to as snake fungal disease (SFD), was initially documented in rattlesnakes, where the infections were believed to pose a risk to the viability of affected populations. The disease is caused by Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola, a fungus recently split from a complex of fungi long referred to as the Chrysosporium anamorph of Nannizziopsis vriesii (CANV). Here we review the current state of knowledge about O. ophiodiicola and SFD. In addition, we provide original findings which demonstrate that O. ophiodiicola is widely distributed in eastern North America, has a broad host range, is the predominant cause of fungal skin infections in wild snakes and often causes mild infections in snakes emerging from hibernation. This new information, together with what is already available in the scientific literature, advances our knowledge of the cause, pathogenesis and ecology of SFD. However, additional research is necessary to elucidate the factors driving the emergence of this disease and develop strategies to mitigate its impacts.

This article is part of the themed issue ‘Tackling emerging fungal threats to animal health, food security and ecosystem resilience’.

Keywords: dermatitis, emerging disease, fungal infection, North America, Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola, snake

Abstract

^{Captured from wild; may have developed SFD in captivity.}

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge NWHC, Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study, Cornell University Animal Health Diagnostic Center and University of Florida Veterinary Medical Center personnel for providing expertise in disease diagnostics, pathology and epidemiology related to SFD. We are grateful to numerous state and federal biologists and wildlife health staff for collecting data, samples and sharing their observations from the field. We thank James Condon and Kevin McCurley for their efforts to bring public attention to this disease early in the investigation. We credit D.E. Green (NWHC) for the photographs used in figure 2b,d and Stephanie Steinfeldt (NWHC) for the photograph used in figure 2a. Original maps modified for figure 1 are attributed to Crates (world map) and Alan Rockefeller (North American map), are available on Wikimedia Commons and are used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation Licence. Additional acknowledgements related to the novel data referenced in this manuscript can be found in the electronic supplementary material.

Acknowledgements

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