MicrobeWorld

Waterdogs, they're called, these larvae of tiger salamanders used as live bait for freshwater fishing. With tiger salamander larvae, anglers hope to catch largemouth bass, channel catfish and other freshwater fishes. They may be in for more than they bargained for: salamanders in bait shops in Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico are infected with ranaviruses, and those in Arizona, with a chytrid fungus called Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd).