- Bagnaia wins Japan MotoGP sprint to cut Martin's lead
- Alcaraz breezes into third round of Shanghai Masters
- Gaza cultural heritage brought to light in Geneva
- 'Bullet for democracy': Trump returns to site of rally shooting
- Italy targets climate activists in 'anti-Gandhi' demo clampdown
- South Korean cult-horror series 'Hellbound' returns at BIFF
- Nepalis fear more floods as climate change melts glaciers
- Honduras arrests environmentalist's alleged murderer
- Padres pitcher Musgrove needs elbow surgery
- Supreme Court lets stand rules to curb mercury, methane emissions
- Boston beat Denver in NBA exhibition season opener, but Jokic says omens are good
- Chagos diaspora angry at lack of input on islands' fate
- Biden says 'not confident' of peaceful US election
- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- Lukaku stars as Napoli beat Como to hold Serie A top spot
- Ohtani set for MLB playoff debut as Dodgers face Padres
- Pogba's drug ban cut to 18 months from four years
- Devine leads New Zealand to big win over India in Women's T20 World Cup
- Bosnia floods kill 16 people
- EU court blocks French ban on vegetable 'steak' labelling
- Prosecutors seek dismissal of rape charges against French rugby players
- Meta AI turns pictures into videos with sound
- Bolivia's Morales says claims he raped a minor are a 'lie'
- MLB Reds hire two-time champion Francona as manager
- Daniel Maldini receives first Italy call-up for Nations League
- US dockworkers return to ports after three-day strike
- Ancelotti points finger at Madrid's 'lack of intensity'
- Haiti reeling after 70 killed in gang attack
- Five Czech kids in hospital over TikTok 'piercing challenge'
- What happens next in Iran-Israel conflict?
- Country star Garth Brooks denies rape accusations
- Stubbs hits maiden century as South Africa make 343-4 against Ireland
- DR Congo to begin mpox vaccination campaign Saturday in east
- Odegaard injury has forced Arsenal to be 'different', says Arteta
- Ratcliffe refuses to guarantee Ten Hag's Man Utd future
- Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court
- Mauritius to hold legislative election on November 10
- Britain qualify for America's Cup final after 60-year wait
- IMF asks Sri Lanka to protect hard-won gains
- Morata returns to Spain Nations League squad after injury
- Irish regulator to probe Ryanair use of facial recognition
- Public allowed to see video evidence in France mass rape trial
- US hiring soars past expectations in sign of resilient market
- Under-fire Ten Hag 'together' with Man Utd hierarchy
- Guardiola talks of Man City love affair as financial hearing rumbles on
- De Bruyne out of Belgium Nations League squad
- Japanese trainer Yahagi hopes Shin Emperor achieves 50-year-old Arc dream
- UK's Starmer hails 'landmark' carbon capture funding
- As EU targets Chinese cars, European rivals sputter
- Bosnia floods kill 14 people
Australian sauna helps save frogs from flesh-eating fungus
Hundreds of endangered Australian Green and Golden Bell frogs huddle inside a sauna, shielded from Sydney's winter chill.
The sauna -– a small greenhouse containing black-painted bricks warmed by the sun -- may be pleasant, but it also protects the frogs from a deadly chytrid fungus that would otherwise drive them to extinction.
Macquarie University biologist Anthony Waddle holds one frog -- no bigger than a credit card -- in his hand as its green and gold colours become more vibrant in the heat.
"Chytrid is the worst pathogen ever", he told AFP.
It is a water-borne disease that burrows into the frogs' skin, attacking their bodies and eventually killing them.
Waddle said that globally, the disease has caused the decline of 500 amphibian species and driven 90 to extinction -– six in Australia.
"Nothing has ever caused this much devastation," he told AFP. "In Australia, we have frogs that only live in glass boxes now. This is a huge, ongoing problem."
But Waddle's dollhouse-sized saunas could change that.
In their warm interiors, the deadly chytrid fungus cannot grow on the frogs, allowing them to fight off the infection and survive.
-'No one solution' -
Frogs play a vital role in the environment and are known as bioindicators, which are used to assess the health of ecosystems.
Without the amphibians, entire ecosystems can collapse.
Globally, 41 percent of frog species are threatened with extinction, making them one of the most vulnerable invertebrate groups, a recent study by the International Union for Conservation of Nature found.
Some of the biggest drivers include loss of habitat, climate change and the chytrid disease.
These drivers are difficult to tackle, but in the absence of a cure, Waddle hopes his frog saunas can help limit the losses.
"This might be the first evidence that we could cheaply and feasibly reduce that nasty yearly die-off of frogs," Waddle said.
"For Green and Golden Bell frogs, that could mean the difference between a population going or persisting."
He said the saunas show that creative solutions ranging from the complex -- such as identifying genes that could make individuals resistant to chytrid -- to more simple are needed if frog populations are to survive.
"Not one solution is going to work for everything. Frogs are so different," Waddle added.
But the beauty of Waddle's saunas is that they cost AUD$70 ($US50) to assemble, and he has helped dozens of citizen scientists build their own backyard versions.
This has not only provided valuable data about endangered frog species but also saved some from the deadly fungus.
Jodi Rowley, an amphibian biologist from the Australian Museum, said the saunas showed how creative solutions could have real-world benefits.
"It's easy to feel helpless in the face of biodiversity declines, but this study gives us a tangible way we may be able to help frogs battling a devastating fungal disease," she told AFP.
Ferreira--PC