Role of Natural History Collections and Zoos in Understanding Emerging Wildlife Diseases

Key breakthroughs in understanding the chytridiomycosis story have emerged not only from traditional field and lab research, but also from the use of natural history collections and zoo holdings. We describe how we have used museum collections to test hypotheses regarding the origin and spread of amphibian diseases across the globe. Zoos have multiple missions in education, entertainment, research, and conservation, and may be involved in disease research, captive-breeding programs, and public e