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We report on the first survey of chytridiomycosis (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis- Bd) in the endangered Fijian ground frog (Platymantis vitiana) population on Viwa-Tailevu, Fiji Islands. This fungal pathogen has been implicated as the primary cause of amphibian declines worldwide. Few cases have been reported from tropical Asia however it was recently documented in 4 species of frogs in Indonesia. Two hundred individual frogs were swabbed from 5 different sites on Viwa Island. Swabs were tested to quantify the number of Bd zoospore equivalents using real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) technique. We found zero (%) prevalence of Bd in ground frogs. The lack of Bd may be due to 1) hot weather all year round inhibiting the spread of Bd, 2) Bd may be absent from Viwa Island due to a lack of amphibian introductions (not introduced or importation of exotic frogs such as Rana catesbeiana, or Xenopus spp or pet trade spp) or 3) the lack of introduction by human vectors due to the geographic isolation, and low visitation of non-local people into the island. While it is difficult to test these hypotheses, a precautionary approach would suggest an effective quarantine is required to protect Fiji's endemic frogs from future disease outbreak. Conservation effort and research is needed at international level to assist the Fiji government in monitoring and protecting their unique endemic amphibians from outbreaks of B. dendrobatidis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The survival of animal species and individuals is largely determined by their ability to express physiological stress responses to predictable and unpredictable environmental challenges. Currently, there is no empirical evidence presenting the stress endocrine responses of female frogs during breeding between different reproductive groups. In this study, non-invasive urine sampling and standard capture and handling protocol were used to quantify baseline and short-term corticosterone stress responses in vitellogenic and non-vitellogenic female Fijian ground frog (Platymantis vitiana) during the annual breeding period. Urinary estrogen and progesterone metabolites were also quantified in the same frog urine samples. Repeated sampling of the female frogs (n = 20) on three occasions enabled repeatability (r) of reproductive and stress hormones to be quantified. All female frogs generated urinary corticosterone responses to the standard capture and handling stressor. Both baseline and short-term corticosterone responses were significantly higher in magnitude in the vitellogenic females in comparison to the non-vitellogenic female frogs. Vitellogenic females also showed significantly higher levels of urinary estrogen and progesterone metabolites in comparison to the non-vitellogenic females. Baseline urinary corticosterone, short-term corticosterone responses, urinary estrogen, and progesterone metabolites were highly repeatable for both female groups. The results highlight the importance of reproductive and stress hormones during the breeding period in female ground frogs. Future studies should determine the role of potential biological stressors (such as interactions with invasive species) that could be mediating the observed differences in stress endocrine responses of the vitellogenic and non-vitellogenic female frogs., (© 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)