Alarm raised after strange backyard phenomenon worsens in Aussie region

Yahoo

4 days ago

For the last two decades, a strange backyard phenomenon has been noticed by alarmed residents in northern Australia. The frogs in their towns have been presenting with strange growths that resemble cancer, and because tumours are rare in frogs there have been increasing concerns about chemical contamination and emerging disease.
On Friday, scientists from the University of Queensland announced they would begin investigating the problem, noting it was important to determine whether the tumours were being caused by something that could also impact human health.
Dr Viviana Gonzalez-Astudillo from the School of Veterinary Science explained that frogs can get similar types of cancers to humans. And because they breathe and absorb water through their skin, they're a good bio-indicator of any contaminants in the environment.
'Because frogs have such an intimate relationship with our waterways, anything we put out there in the form of chemicals or pathogens — viruses, fungi, parasites or bacteria — they're going to be probably the first type of vertebrate that is going to be exposed and manifest something,' she told Yahoo News Australia.
'That is where the concern is, and that is why we need to investigate.'
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Chemical contamination found in one-third of frogs
Dr Gonzalez-Astudillo said the investigation should not cause 'wide-scale panic' about new contaminants entering the environment, and it's important to stress the cause of the growths remains a mystery. But there are pervasive substances like PFAS, which is commonly used in non-stick cookware and flame retardants, or even long-banned chemicals that can exist in the environment for decades, and it's important to rule this out.
Chemical contamination is a known problem affecting frogs. An Australian Museum and University of NSW study published in April found 36 per cent of frogs in eastern NSW had either a rodenticide or legacy pesticide in their livers. But frogs are also highly susceptible to disease — the introduction of chytrid fungus caused at least six extinctions in Australia.
Clusters of the mystery tumours have been restricted to towns around Far North Queensland, and since 1998, non-profit group Frog Safe has assessed 60 animals. Last year, Yahoo reported that since 2020, four new forms of the disease had emerged that hadn't been encountered before.
Because the tumours are generally found around the eyes and mouth, without medical attention, vital bodily functions are inhibited, and the frogs die.
Herpes virus linked to separate disease cluster
In Queensland, the tumours have been found in white-lipped and common green tree frogs. Similar symptoms have been documented in the North American leopard frog, where the problem was linked to a frog herpes virus that develops when the weather is hotter.
Anecdotally, the mystery frog tumours in Queensland are becoming more prevalent, but this now needs to be backed up by scientific evidence. It's rare for vets to treat sick frogs, so it's believed most cases go unreported.
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For the research to be successful, the University of Queensland team need public help. They're calling on anyone who spots a frog with an unusual growth to contact Frog Safe on [phone] and email the photos to [e-mail].
Attempts will be made to treat all sick frogs, and no animals will be killed specifically for the study. The research is expected to run until November, 2026 and is supported by the CSIRO Ecosurveillance Systems team.
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