Laura Grogan, PhD

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Chytridiomycosis is unprecedented in its ability to drive populations to extinction, and many species are now only secure in captivity. Additionally, the disease greatly increases the risk of extinction from other threatening processes such as habitat loss, climate change, toxins, introduced pests, and over-exploitation. Abating this crisis is one of the most urgent issues in conservation today.

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Eradication of the fungus is impossible, and intensive control through targeted management strategies is essential to help small populations recover. Management techniques are currently limited to preventing spread of the disease, or removing frogs from the wild. While the value of captive breeding and release programs is controversial, they are currently the only effective tool for preventing extinction in declining species. Unfortunately, despite successful captive rearing, the disease is still present in the environment, and frogs still die when they are reintroduced to the wild.​

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My Research Funding

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• Australian Academy of Science 2020 J G Russell Award (Laura Grogan)

 

• Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award DE200100490: "Understanding infection tolerance to improve management of wildlife disease" (Laura Grogan)

 

• Griffith University School of Environment and Science ENGAGE grant scheme 2019: "Impacts of fire-fighting chemicals on endangered frogs: Implications for conservation and management" (Clare Morrison, Chantal Lanctot, Dan Ferguson, Laura Grogan, David Newell, Hamish McCallum)

 

• Griffith University New Researcher Grant 2019: "A metabolomic investigation of the amphibian fungal skin disease, chytridiomycosis" (Laura Grogan)

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• Griffith University 2019 International Workshop Award: "Generalising amphibian disease models across species and international boundaries" (Hamish McCallum and Laura Grogan)

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• Early Career Researcher Travel Grant 2018 (Laura Grogan)

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• Environmental Futures Research Institute Strategic Leverage Fund 2018: "Investigation of immune gene expression in the amphibian fungal skin disease, chytridiomycosis" (Laura Grogan)

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• Griffith University School of Environment and Science Research Support Scheme 2018: "Amphibians of the World Heritage-listed Gondwana Rainforests: Distribution, habitat use, conservation status and potential threats"

 

• New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage Saving our Species Key Threatening Process Project: "The great leap forward; investigating recovery and resistance to amphibian chytrid fungus in an endangered frog from the World Heritage Rainforests of NSW"

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• Australian Research Council Discovery Project DP180101415: "A novel modelling approach for understanding wildlife disease dynamics"

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