About This Project

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

A great deal of literature exists on contamination in wildlife populations and its effects on survival however little research has provided clear effects on immune function and disease susceptibility. Wild populations are rarely subjected to one stressor at a time so looking at the combination of contamination and disease will help elucidate how populations are responding to multiple stressors and how they may respond to further stress in the future. Specifically, little information exists on a newly emerging snake fungal disease that is spreading throughout the eastern United States. This research will help us predict areas of potential outbreak of this disease allowing us to further study the disease and its spread.

What is the significance of this project?

Disease ecology is a growing field especially with so many newly emerging disease (i.e. White-Nose Syndrome, Chytrid Fungus, Ranavirus, etc) and is important if we are to understand the effects that these diseases will have on our wildlife populations. This project will provide an answer to how wildlife populations are responding to multiple stressors in the wake of these new diseases. More importantly, reptiles have been in decline globally and with a newly emerging fungal disease affecting snakes it is imperative that we understand the susceptibility of snakes to this disease when also dealing with other chronic stressors such as contamination. Snakes are dominant predators in many ecosystems, play a critical role in healthy ecosystem functions, and are a food source for top predators.

What are the goals of the project?

1. Snakes will be fed fish injected with the pesticide, Atrazine, for a period of one month.
2. A control group will be fed uncontaminated fish.
3. Both groups will be tested for differences in immune function via the ability of individuals to: