Environmental predictors of disease risk for Litoria raniformis populations in south-eastern Australia

Chytridiomycosis is an amphibian disease which has led to population declines globally. In this thesis I present a literature review of temperature as a driver of chytrid infection prevalence and intensity. I then go on to investigate the drivers of chytrid prevalence in Litoria raniformis populations of semi-arid and temperate regions in south-eastern Australia. I then look at the impacts this has on age structure and growth rates in both these climatic regions, given chytrid is endemic in the populations. This is then used to build a population viability analysis at a selected wetland in the semi-arid Lowbidgee region to determine the influence of timing and water temperature of water deliveries to the wetland and the impact this has on extinction probabilities for Litoria raniformis.