SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT OF BATRACHOCHYTRIUM DENDROBATIDIS IN EASTERN HELLBENDERS (CRYPTOBRANCHUS ALLEGANIENSIS ALLEGANIENSIS) WITH TERBINAFINE

In 2019, two wild-caught adult female eastern hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) received a preshipment examination and were individually swabbed for chytrid testing via quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Physical examination was unremarkable. Both females tested positive for Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and negative for B. salamandrivorans (Bsal). A course of terbinafine hydrochloride 1% in alcohol was administered in a 0.005% treatment bath for 5 min once daily for 5 d. Both animals were individually retested 1, 3, and 4 wk after treatment using qPCR. All post-treatment samples were negative for Bd and Bsal. This report represents the first successful treatment with terbinafine hydrochloride 1% in alcohol to eliminate subclinical Bd infection in eastern hellbenders and underlines the importance of preshipment testing for chytrid in all amphibians being transferred to new facilities or released into the wild as a means to minimize risk of disease introduction via subclinically infected individuals.