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 offers a pleasant warmth, and also protects the frogs from a deadly fungus called chytrid that would otherwise drive them to extinction.

It is a water-borne disease that burrows into the frogs' skin, attacking their bodies and eventually killing them. In their warm interiors, the deadly chytrid fungus cannot grow on the frogs, allowing them to fight off the infection and survive.

Frogs play a vital role in the environment and are known as bio-indicators, 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.